


Without You Here

by somethingfamiliar



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alpha Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun, Alpha Lee Jeno, Alpha Mark Lee (NCT), Alpha Nakamoto Yuta, Alpha Seo Youngho | Johnny, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alpha/Omega, Alternate Universe, Angst, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Angst with a Happy Ending, Developing Relationship, Established Relationship, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Smut, Internal Conflict, Internalized Homophobia, M/M, Mating, Mating Bond, Mating Cycles/In Heat, NO SMUT FOR DREAMIES, Non-Traditional Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, OR UNDERAGE, Omega Kim Jungwoo (NCT), Omega Lee Donghyuck | Haechan, Omega Lee Taeyong, Omega Na Jaemin, Omega Qian Kun, Omega Verse, Read at your own discretion, Self-Esteem Issues, Sexuality Crisis, Shameless Smut, Smut, Trouble In Paradise
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-04
Updated: 2019-04-04
Packaged: 2020-01-04 20:35:01
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 41,413
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18351221
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/somethingfamiliar/pseuds/somethingfamiliar
Summary: When Jungwoo finds himself falling for Jaehyun, he knows it's a downward spiral, but between eighteen members- 7 Alphas, 7 Omegas and 4 Betas- things are always overcomplicated. See, it wouldn't be as complicated if Jaehyun stopped denying himself of what he really needed and the others were not about to leave him to go it alone, even if the truth did hurt.From trouble in paradise, to late night escapades, Taeyong had no easy job as the leader...*Not fully proof-read just yet, but completed!*EDIT: A sequel is on it's way, including the WayV members this time! Please anticipate it ^_^





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> < Please note that I'm merely using the NCT members as characters in a story and am in no way trying to abuse their content, personal image or work with anything I've written. >
> 
> I think I've made it fairly clear throughout, but just in case:
> 
> Taeil- Beta  
> Johnny- Alpha  
> Taeyong- Omega  
> Yuta- Alpha  
> Kun- Omega  
> Doyoung- Alpha  
> Ten- Alpha  
> Jaehyun- Alpha  
> Winwin- Omega  
> Jungwoo- Omega  
> Lucas- Beta  
> Mark- Alpha  
> Renjun- Beta  
> Jeno- Alpha  
> Haechan- Omega  
> Jaemin- Omega  
> Chenle- Omega  
> Jisung- Beta/Not yet presented.
> 
> Enjoy!

Jungwoo took a seat beside Johnny, unexpectedly quiet as they settled down at the dinner table. It had been a long day. A day in which all eighteen of them had danced and sung and sweat more than anyone wanted to admit. Finally they were all seated around the dinner table, keening at the food in front of them and not caring that it was almost 11pm. Johnny turned to Jungwoo expectantly and frowned. Jungwoo was never this quiet, yes he was quiet, but never like this. It was strange, to say the least, they’d had a successful day so why wasn’t Jungwoo celebrating with everyone else?

“What’s up?” Johnny murmured, placing a sliver of sashimi on top of his rice, “You smell different.” Johnny studied him closely inhaling his scent again. Jungwoo had only shown as an Omega in the past 6 months and Johnny was still getting use to his scent, they all were, but as an Alpha, Johnny was the best at sensing a change in emotion or behaviour. Jungwoo looked up from his food, suddenly jolted from his thoughts. He dragged a smile onto his face and Johnny could see right through it,

“Oh, nothing, I’m just really tired from all the practice.” He tried, voice fading out a little as the group yelled something in unison. Johnny frowned again and tried not to push it. He knew that if Jungwoo wanted to talk, then he would, but he wouldn’t force him. Jungwoo tried to focus on his food, smiling softly as he felt Johnny slide an arm around his waist in reassurance. He remembered when he’d first realised he was an Alpha and how difficult that year was, he didn’t want Jungwoo to have to go through the same struggles. He didn’t want any of them to have to go through those struggles. Johnny suddenly looked up as a scent changed in the room and suddenly he knew something he knew he shouldn’t.

 

Haechan was angry. Haechan was never usually angry, but right now he was and Jungwoo couldn’t help but be a little scared, even if they were both Omegas. The living room had been turned into a minefield and Jungwoo couldn’t bring himself to continue tidying up the mess that Haechan would just wreck again.

“Why? Why is he like this? I hate him! I truly hate him!” Haechan was screeching, throwing down the pillow he had gripped in his fist. Jungwoo tried not to flinch, “He won’t even talk it out with me! Why won’t he talk it out with me? I’m so done with him!” Haechan added and Jungwoo grit his teeth, understanding the exact feeling that Haechan was dealing with.

“You don’t really hate him though, do you, Haechan.” Jungwoo commented quietly, more to himself than to Haechan who was wreaking havoc throughout their living area. He spun around to face Jungwoo with a look of disapproval, the sound of the front door unlocking in the distance, but Jungwoo was too frightened to acknowledge it.

“Yes, Jungwoo, I _do_ hate him.” Haechan grit out and Jungwoo slouched in response. The sound of heavy breathing knocked them both from their reverie and Jungwoo looked up to find Mark, Jaehyun and Yuta in the doorway. Haechan turned to face them and Jungwoo watched as Mark’s face slowly crumbled, moving from his seat as Mark swept away to the bathrooms, hiding his face in his sleeve. Jungwoo was always taught that Alpha’s didn’t cry, but he knew otherwise. Haechan stood there pathetically and Jaehyun was suddenly moving forward to grip Haechan’s shoulders, guiding him towards the kitchen to talk things through. Taeyong had already appeared and was knocking at the bathroom door while Yuta stood in place a little dumbfounded. Jungwoo swallowed the lump in his throat and tried to smile at Yuta, but he wasn’t believing it for one moment. He stepped forward, bringing Jungwoo into his arms as he relaxed against his shoulder, breathing his scent and hugging him closer as he tried not to cry.

“I know what happened with you, Jungwoo.” Yuta murmured into his hair, running a hand through it rhythmically as he tried to calm Jungwoo, “Please don’t be upset.”

 

It wasn’t like Jungwoo hadn’t recalled the events of that very day in his head over and over again, but since Yuta had hugged him and told him he knew what was going on, Jungwoo had begun to panic. He didn’t want to keep recalling that day, but he knew he needed to make up with Jaehyun at some point, even if that meant having to put himself through the memory of it for the millionth time. He lay in bed, trying his best not to make too much noise as he sobbed quietly into the sheets, but he knew he wasn’t doing well. Before he could comprehend what was happening, the bed dipped beside him and Lucas’ body was behind him, pulling him into his chest to comfort him. It always was nice to have Betas in the dorms, even if it was only Taeil, Lucas, Renjun and, so far, Jisung. Jungwoo liked how they cared for everyone, they weren’t afraid of the Alpha’s and weren’t too hard on the more sensitive of the Omega’s. Jungwoo inhaled his neutral scent.

“Shh, you don’t have to talk to me, just let me lay with you awhile.” Lucas whispered, eyes watering as he heard Jungwoo stutter on a breath. Jungwoo nodded and reached for Lucas’ hand, interlacing their fingers on his waist. He knew he couldn’t carry on like this, couldn’t keep avoiding the subject and hoping for the best, but he knew that the other party wouldn’t make the first move. Not after what had gone on.

“Lucas, I don’t know what to do.” Jungwoo whimpered, wiping his eyes on the sleeve of his sweater. Come to think of it, it smelled of Doyoung, it might have been his sweater. Lucas pulled his arm tighter around Jungwoo’s waist and pressed his face into the back of his neck.

“It’s okay. You don’t have to do anything. Just let things happen themselves, okay? Mark and Haechan, you and- anyway, you don’t have to worry.” Lucas replied, cutting himself off as he pressed his nose into Jungwoo’s neck.

“You know, as well?” Jungwoo replied, but Lucas only nodded in response.

 

It was a week and a half later when Jungwoo found himself in the kitchen, making two cups of coffee instead of one. The Dreamies had been practicing all day and Jungwoo had found himself restlessly waiting for Jaemin and Jeno to come back to play with him, but apparently this wasn’t a good enough distraction.

“Jungwoo?” Taeyong appeared in the doorway, pausing to study Jungwoo’s stiff posture and closed-off expression.

“Oh, h-hi, did you want a coffee?” Jungwoo asked, sliding the mug across to him without another thought.

“You already made one?” Taeyong asked, stepping forward and pulling himself onto the countertop to sit across from Jungwoo who was cradling his coffee mug a little mournfully. Taeyong always looked younger in the Autumn. Maybe it was the way the light hit him or maybe it was because his Omega just got a little needier in the colder months, but Jungwoo loved it. He was easier to confide in.

“Yeah, I- I thought someone else asked for one, but I must have just been too tired.” He smiled bashfully and Taeyong laughed, taking a long sip as he relaxed against the overhead cupboards, “When do the others get back?” He asked, wanting to change the subject.

“The kids? They’ll be back after lunch, I think we’re going out for Japanese, are you coming?” Taeyong asked, tentatively and Jungwoo didn’t really like that. He nodded, not thinking too much and simply letting things happen, just like Lucas had said. Yes, he’d sit with Lucas and Johnny or maybe Yuta, there was no guarantee he’d even be sitting near the very person who’d started this mess, he was sure of that.

“Good, I think we’re leaving in about an hour.” Taeyong smiled, clicking his tongue as he slid off the countertop. Jungwoo nodded and finished the remainder of his coffee as he watched Taeyong leave.

 

Everything was going just like Jungwoo had planned, maybe better, because half the members who had planned to come to dinner hadn’t turned up and the very person he was avoiding had been one of them. Kun sat to his left and Yuta to his right, that was better than planned, mostly because Kun was oblivious of any uncomfort that Jungwoo had and managed to hold a fun conversation to distract him.

“I got a call from the others and they’ll be here soon. The Dreamies just got home and are resting up now, so make sure you’re quiet when you get back to the apartment, okay?” Johnny called down the table, eyes flashing down to his phone and back up to the group as they began ordering. Jungwoo smiled, being reminded of how excited they were to be home after practice to play, but knowing the reality that they were all probably passed out on the living room couch by now.

“Ah, you guys came just in time!” Yuta called over his shoulder, startling the others as they turned to see the rest of the group join them. Jungwoo was quick to look away.

“Did you miss us?” Doyoung smiled, taking a seat across from Johnny and ruffling his hair affectionately, it really was odd to think they were both Alphas. Everyone began settling down and Jungwoo kept his eyes on the table, not daring to look up, because Jaehyun was taking the seat opposite him. Yuta reached beneath the table to squeeze his thigh reassuringly and Jungwoo placed his hand on top, gritting his teeth and trying his best to control his scent, though Yuta could already smell him.

“Have you all ordered?” Taeil asked, sitting himself across from Kun and reaching for the drinks menu.

“Yep, but we’ve set up a tab so you can order anything more that you want.” Lucas replied from down the table and Jungwoo watched in his peripheral as Jaehyun flinched. He could probably smell him. Jaehyun was never the most observant of the group, why did that have to change now?

As the food arrived, the group fell into comfortable conversations along the table and Yuta began talking to Jungwoo about the cuisine to keep him from being uncomfortable about his scent. He hated to admit that he’d seen Jaehyun sigh and shift in his seat awkwardly, smiling falsely and nodding in agreement with whatever Kun had said. Yuta kept piling food onto Jungwoo’s plate and encouraging him to eat more, promising it would make him feel better in a quiet voice whenever Jungwoo looked at him warily.

“Jaehyun, can you pass the soy sauce?” Ten asked, leaning forward to catch his attention and it was at that moment that Jungwoo knew something was going to go wrong, because his hand was on the soy sauce and Jaehyun’s hand was so soft against his and suddenly he was pulling away, the soy sauce flying into his lap and staining his T-shirt. Yuta was quick in grabbing the bottle before it slipped onto his thighs and stained his jeans as well, but Jungwoo was already covered in it.

“Oh god, I’m so sorry, Jungwoo, I wasn’t concentrating. I’m so sorry, I can’t believe myself.” Jaehyun was muttering, standing from his seat to hand Jungwoo napkins and try to see the damage he’d done.

“It’s-it’s fine, don’t worry, I’ll just- I’ll be in the bathroom.” He replied warily, standing from his seat and holding his shirt away from his skin. Kun began moving from his seat, sensing something was wrong and asking if he wanted him to come too, but Jungwoo quickly reassured him that he was fine on his own. He needed a moment alone anyway.

The bathroom was cold- cold and a little dark- and Jungwoo knew that it’d be empty this evening. There was maybe one other couple eating in the restaurant that day and as he’d walked past them they were paying their bill, getting ready to leave. He sighed to himself, observing the damage in the wide mirror and turning to see if he could get any of the stains out easily. It was fine, he’d be fine, it would be okay. He reached for the hem of his shirt and pulled it over his head as he dampened some paper towels and began trying to resolve the wreckage in the cold restaurant bathroom. The door swung open and Jungwoo rolled his eyes, smiling a little as he continued cleaning the fabric,

“Kun, honestly, I said it’s okay. It’s not too bad anyway.” Jungwoo murmured, not looking up from the striped T-shirt he was squeezing into the sink. It was actually pretty bad.

“I- I’m really sorry, Jungwoo.” And Jungwoo was panicking because it was Jaehyun standing in the doorway with his gym bag in hand, not Kun, “I have a spare sweater in here, you can wear it now.” Jaehyun continued, struggling to keep his eyes on Jungwoo’s face and watching as he turned away from him and frantically scrubbed at his T-shirt with his nails.

“I said it’s okay, don’t worry, I can just wear this-” He began, only cutting off when he looked up into the mirror, watching as Jaehyun moved to stand behind him with a frown on his face as he placed his gym bag beside the sink. He could feel him now, feel the heat of his skin, smell his scent, this wasn’t good.

“Jungwoo, please, just take the sweater.” He paused and Jungwoo swore he saw Jaehyun’s eyes shift over his abdomen in the mirror, but he convinced himself it was a trick of the light, “I'll get you a new T-shirt, I promise.” He continued and Jungwoo’s hands stuttered on the shirt, reaching to turn off the tap and give in, but he couldn’t do it. He couldn’t have the smell of Jaehyun on him for even a moment, yet here he was offering him him his sweater.

“Jaehyun, I said it’s-” Jungwoo began, but he was reaching forward, pulling the sweater from his gym bag and brushing his fingers against Jungwoo’s elbow.

“Stop, Jungwoo. Just admit that you’d take it if we hadn’t fought.” Jaehyun persisted, slinging the sweater over his shoulder and reaching to grip Jungwoo’s hips to move him away from the sink, his fingers hovering over the bare skin of his waist and lingering a little longer than Jungwoo deemed necessary. He kept his mouth shut, watching as Jaehyun took the T-shirt from his hands and wrung it out in the basin before stuffing it into his gym bag, turning back to Jungwoo and studying his face for a moment.

“Here,” Jaehyun said quietly, gathering the fabric to pull over his head, but Jungwoo was reaching up, his hand resting over Jaehyun's to stop him.

“Wait,” he replied, not meeting his eyes and suddenly regretting his choice, “Wait, just tell me why-why you said no? It’s kept me up for a week now and I just want to know, please, Jaehyun. It’s all I ask.” Jungwoo finally decided and he wished he’d learn to keep his mouth shut. Jaehyun was looking at him with those big mournful eyes that made Jungwoo admit to every wrong doing in his life and turned his legs to jelly. He sighed, trying his best to drag a soft smile onto his face and failing miserably as he continued, brushing off Jungwoo’s hand and pulling the sweater over his head, helping him slot his arms through the fabric,

“Because I’m not like you, Jungwoo. We’re both boys and this isn’t how it should be. I don’t understand how you could have even asked me in the first place, I know I’m an Alpha and you’re an Omega, but it’s- it’s disgusting.” He explained, face unreadable as he rested his hands on Jungwoo’s biceps, squeezing softly. Jungwoo wanted to answer or maybe to cry or yell, but Jaehyun was grabbing his gym bag and returning to the restaurant, leaving Jungwoo standing there in silence.

 

Mark had found Jungwoo crying in the dorm bathroom the following day, in an attempt to find an unused can of hairspray. He sat beside him on the tiled floor and locked the door to let Jungwoo cry freely. He had a basic idea of what had occurred, thanks to Yuta, but he didn’t want to push Jungwoo, he knew he was sensitive.

“Do you want to get food?” Mark tried, channelling his scent to feel protective around Jungwoo, he wasn’t convinced it was working. Jungwoo had always preferred Doyoung’s scent and Mark wasn’t surprised, it was gorgeous.

“I’m not hungry.” He replied quietly, eyes trained on the white tiles as Mark tried to help him sit up.

“B-but you haven’t eaten since yesterday at lunch.” Mark replied, frowning at Jungwoo’s expressionless face. He looked tired and too pale, a little gaunt maybe.

“I’m not hungry.” Jungwoo repeated and Mark stopped pushing it, opting for another tactic.

“What happened in the bathroom, Jungwoo?” He wasn’t going to let this slide now, he needed Jungwoo to tell him so he had a reason to beat Jaehyun’s ass. He’d been wanting to for weeks now, but as an Alpha and Jungwoo’s best friend, he’d refrained.

“It doesn’t matter-” Jungwoo began, but Mark was cutting him off, eyes sliding over his face with a new intensity that had Jungwoo wondering when it was that Mark had grown up.

“Yes, it does, actually. Tell me what happened, Jungwoo.” Mark said firmly and Jungwoo couldn’t help but cower a little, trying his best to recover as he knew Mark wouldn’t let this drop now.

“He just- He just doesn’t want me. That’s it.” Jungwoo tried, biting his lip and looking towards the bathtub in defeat, “He says that he’s-he’s _not like me,_ that it’s _disgusting_.” He finished and Mark frowned, crouching down to try and meet Jungwoo’s gaze again.

“Not like you? As in _not gay_?” He asked, brows pulled together in confusion. Jungwoo nodded and Mark shook his head, angrily gritting his teeth, “Absolute bullshit. He really is fucking pathetic, you know.” He finished quietly and without a second thought, Mark was unlocking the door and storming down the corridor, leaving Jungwoo a mess on the bathroom floor.

“Jaehyun! Get out here right now!” Mark screeched, causing Jungwoo to fly to his feet in dismay, desperate to stop Mark, but the others were exiting their rooms now, standing in the corridor as they watched the situation pan out. Doyoung noticed Jungwoo trying to rush after Mark and grabbed him by the waist before he could get any further.

“Jungwoo, whatever it is, Jaehyun needs to hear it.” He whispered into Jungwoo’s hair, holding him tightly and taking Jungwoo back to the bathroom to clean him up. He turned to Ten before shutting the door, gripping his elbow to stop him,

“Don’t let it get out of hand, okay?” He pleaded, and Ten nodded, ushering the younger ones back into their rooms as Taeyong, Johnny and Taeil made to stand outside the doorway in case anything happened. It was bold of Mark to pick a fight with someone older than him, even bolder for the other’s not to immediately stop him, but Taeyong had felt the tension for too long and this was the breaking point. Jaehyun had gone too far, had hurt Jungwoo weeks ago, but clearly there was a fresher wound now and Mark was the one to pour rubbing alcohol on it this time.

“Jungwoo, sit down, you’re walking unstably.” Doyoung said quietly, helping Jungwoo up onto the bathroom counter and wrapping his scent around him as he reached for his phone. He pressed the first playlist he could find and turned up the volume to block out the raised voices. Jungwoo began to cry again.

Jaehyun was sat in his room- Haechan had luckily been with Renjun and Jeno playing a video game in the living room- when Mark appeared, yelling his name down the corridor. He met Mark at the door, but was surprised to see him kicking it shut behind him, eyes boring into him with a hint of vengeance.

“What did you do? What the fuck did you do, Jaehyun!” Mark yelled, staring angrily up at him, eyebrows pulled together in frustration.

“What do you mea-”

“You know what I mean, Jaehyun! What did you tell Jungwoo? What did you say to him?” Mark interrupted, breathing heavily as he thought the situation over in his head once again. _How could he treat someone like that? How could he treat an Omega like that?_

“How can you be angry at me? If I’m not _gay_ , then I won’t lead him on, so what’s the problem? What are you accusing me of?” Jaehyun replied, voice reaching the same volume as Mark’s.

“I’m accusing you of breaking him, Jaehyun! Rejection is hard enough for an Omega, but you’ve led him on, you’ve broken his heart and now he’s destroyed because of you. How do you think this is okay?” Mark yelled back and Taeyong was starting to get a little light-headed from all the angered Alpha scents. Johnny noticed and turned towards him, cradling his face in worry.

“Taeyong, you need to go, this is too much.” Johnny said quietly, eyes flashing to Taeil who was nodding along.

“No, Johnny I’m fine, it was just for a moment and I feel better now.” Taeyong replied and Johnny was gripping his face a little firmer.

“Taeyong, please, Taeil can get Jeno in case anything happens, but you need to go now.” Johnny replied through gritted teeth, his protective instincts for the Omega suddenly kicking in and Johnny was getting impatient.

“But, I’m the leader, I have to-” He began to reply, but Taeil was gripping his elbow and the sound of scrambling could be heard through the door. Mark and Jaehyun must have already started throwing punches then.

“Taeyong, I said now! Go before you pass out. Taeil send Jeno down.” Johnny snapped, using his Alpha voice on Taeyong this time and for a moment he thought Taeyong might be crying, but Yuta was calling for him from inside the room. Taeil was quick to sweep Taeyong away and Johnny was rushing towards Mark, holding him back as he bared his teeth at Jaehyun. Jeno appeared in the doorway a moment later, running to Ten’s side as he tried his best to hold back Jaehyun, but he was strong, reaching for Mark as he growled low in his throat.

“You’re a fucking coward, Jaehyun. You can’t accept the truth and at this rate you might never accept it. You ruined him.” Mark snarled, lunging forward in Yuta and Johnny’s hold.

“He ruined himself, you’re just too fucking lovesick to see half the things we see. Don’t you dare try and put this on me just because you know he’ll never find someone who’ll truly love him.” Jaehyun shot back and that was the moment that Yuta let go of Mark and lunged forward, falling on top of Jaehyun and gripping his hands around his neck in anger,

“Say that one more time you bastard! I dare you!” Yuta barked, pinning Jaehyun’s arms to the floor with his knees, Jeno was recovering from the impact of being thrown against the wall and Ten was trying his best to soothe him and make to stop Yuta, but Mark was advancing on Jaehyun again and Johnny was slower to stop him.

“Mark, stay where you are. Yuta, let go of his throat.” Johnny growled harshly, using his Alpha voice on all of them now. It was so rare to hear him use it and yet he’d spoken with it twice in the past 6 minutes. Yuta released his hands, but stayed put on top of Jaehyun, pinning him to the floor. Mark paused, eyes dark as he looked up at Johnny with annoyance. Johnny ignored him and slowly crossed the room to lean down to face Jaehyun who was gasping for air.

“What did you just say?” Johnny asked calmly, a little too calmly. Yuta grit his teeth and Jeno visibly froze. He’d never seen Johnny like this, he was still young in age and even younger in Alpha.

“I said he’ll never find someone who’ll love hi-” Jaehyun began, but Johnny was gritting his teeth and smacking him around the face, the sound echoing, Jeno gasping as Ten held him closely.

“Don’t you ever say that again. You may forget, Jaehyun, but I can personally ruin your life if I wanted to. You’re a new Alpha in a band with seven young Omega’s, I wonder what the media might say about that, hm?” Johnny spat, standing up to circle him, Yuta still pinning him to the ground with his hips.

“No one would believe you.” Jaehyun spat back, growling at Johnny, but Johnny felt no threat from him at all.

“No, but they’d believe Taeyong, the leader, an Omega himself. They’d believe Mark, a fellow Alpha and Yuta one of the same and Ten. They’d especially believe our little Jeno, who witnessed another older Alpha setting such an example.” Johnny continued and Jeno was breathing heavily now, Ten trying his best to calm him without letting off too much of a calming scent.

“What do you want me to do?” Jaehyun spat back, his head suddenly feeling fuzzy from his early lack of oxygen.

“Oh, I don’t want you to do anything, Jaehyun. I just want you to know that if you ever speak a bad word of anyone else in this group, especially Jungwoo, we will tear your life apart from the very core. You will be the one never to know love if you continue this behaviour, just keep that in mind for the next time you speak ill of someone close to us.” Johnny finished coldly, his Alpha voice resonating around the room, finally breaking his eye contact with Jaehyun.

“Ten, take Jeno back to his room, please.” Johnny spoke, voice calmer now as he sighed deeply, “Mark, you can go now, take Haechan’s things and he can spend the night with you. Yuta, stay here a moment.” Ten nodded, guiding Jeno to the door and watching over his shoulder as Mark reluctantly stood, staring daggers at Jaehyun as he collected Haechan a set of clean clothes and sleepwear before following Ten and Jeno out the door, clicking it shut behind them.

“Jaehyun, when was your last Rut?” Johnny suddenly asked and Yuta raised an eyebrow, wondering why he was still present for this conversation, but still keeping Jaehyun pinned to the floor.

“I’ve not had one yet. I only started showing a few months ago.” Jaehyun grit out and Yuta frowned, staring at him intently.

“How many months?” He asked before Johnny could and Jaehyun scoffed, rolling his eyes.

“Why should I tell you-” He began, but Johnny was cutting in, voice low and growling.

“How many months, Jaehyun?” and Johnny watched as he cowered again.

“Maybe six? Why?” He asked, suddenly confused as to where this was going. Yuta exchanged a look with Johnny and they suddenly began pulling him to his feet.

“You’re late.” Johnny said shortly, gripping his forearm as they led him out the door and down the corridors towards the basement.

“Where are we going? Why are you-” Jaehyun began, but Yuta was sighing in frustration, unlocking the door and guiding them down to the rooms. The basement was refurbished and looked almost exactly the same as the upstairs rooms, only there were two rooms down here, one labelled ‘A’ and the other labelled ‘O’.

“You have to go into Rut. We have pills that force you into it and you’re going to take one, because you’re late. Very late.” Johnny explained, letting Yuta unlock the door labelled ‘A’. The room seemed like any other, a king-sized bed in the centre and an ensuite bathroom attached as well as a small kitchenette on the far side.

“Why do I have to-” Jaehyun began again, but Johnny was letting go of him, Yuta shutting the door behind them as the three of them stood in the room.

“All of us Alpha’s go into Rut every four months, the Omega’s have their Heat’s every other month, that’s why we have these rooms. The Ruts can last anywhere between four days and eight and you must let another Alpha know when you’re about to go into one so we can clear your schedule and get you into a room before you get your hands on an Omega. Once you’re mated this won’t matter, but for now it will and you need to be aware of it.” Johnny reached into his back pocket to retrieve a pill bottle he’d grabbed on their way down to the basement, “Take one of these and we’ll leave you to it. There’s food in the fridge and cupboards and there’s a scent neutraliser so you shouldn’t smell yourself or anyone else in the room. We have monitors that pick up the words ‘emergency’ and ‘NCT’ these are the only things that you can say for us to hear you, otherwise you’re muted to us. Once your Rut is done just say ‘NCT’ anywhere in the room and we’ll come down to check if you’re through then let you back upstairs. ‘Emergency’ should obviously only be used if there’s an emergency, understand?” Johnny said firmly and Yuta began filling a glass of water to hand to Jaehyun.

“O-okay,” Jaehyun nodded and Yuta couldn’t help but feel the slightest bit sorry for him, only then to be reminded of the awful things he’d said about Jungwoo and he was back to momentarily hating him, “Okay.” He repeated again and Johnny placed the pill in his open palm.

“Drink up,” Johnny said, watching as he placed the pill on his tongue and gulped down the water, opening his mouth afterwards to prove he’d swallowed it, “Good, now, see you in a few days.” Johnny finished and for a heart-stopping moment, Jaehyun wondered if this may be all a trick to have Jaehyun trapped down here as a punishment, but he knew that his Rut would have to come eventually. Yuta nodded, and they both left, locking the door from the outside as they went. Jaehyun was left alone.

 

On arriving back on the main floor, Johnny gathered everyone in the living area, gripping Taeyong by the waist in a threateningly possessive manner.

“Everyone sit down.” He said steadily and the group began making themselves comfortable around the room, Jeno pulling Jaemin in by the hips, Mark wrapping his arms around Haechan who was sat between his legs and Doyoung letting Jungwoo crawl into his lap. Taeil stayed beside Taeyong, make sure he was able to manage the mix of scents after having to deal with the stronger ones earlier.

“Hyung, where is Jaehyun?” Chenle asked quietly, curling into Lucas’ chest as they sat on the carpet beside Jisung who was currently chewing on his nails. Johnny sighed and Yuta grit his teeth, letting Kun get comfortable beside him for maybe the eleventh time in the past thirty seconds. He was on edge, a little irritable and jumpy about everything. Johnny shot him a glance,

“He’s going to go into Rut for now, so some of your schedules might be tweaked, but it shouldn’t affect us as a whole. Thanks to the Alphas no one got too hurt and I’m very thankful to all of the Betas who protected and looked after our Omegas so well, especially Taeil-Hyung. Please remember to eat properly and let someone know if you’re having problems, whether that be with Heats and Ruts or relationships.” Johnny paused again and looked to Taeil to see if he had anything to say, he smiled softly, eyes darting to Taeyong for a moment,

“Please remember to look after one another, even if that means taking care of a Hyung. If you’re the only one who can relate, then please do so and don’t be afraid to ask for help. Jisung hasn’t yet shown and Renjun and Lucas could still show, so don’t be embarrassed to ask the older ones in the group for help or guidance.” Taeil added and Johnny nodded his agreement, Taeyong smiling shakily as they finished.

“Good, thank you for everyone’s help today and hopefully we won’t have to deal with something like this again. I also apologise to those of you who had to hear my Alpha voice, I don’t like to use it and I hope no one is upset or uncomfortable.” Johnny finished and the group hummed their appreciation. Yuta smiled up at Johnny and the discussion came to an end, but no one made any move to leave the living room except Ten who made to put the kettle on.

“I’m really sorry, Jungwoo, I couldn’t help it.” Mark said quietly, pressing his fingers against Haechan’s scalp as he tried to soothe himself by connecting with the Omega. Jungwoo twisted in Doyoung’s lap, resettling so he faced Mark,

“You don’t have to apologise, Doyoung said it probably needed to be said anyway. Thank you.” Jungwoo replied, voice watery and eyes still red-rimmed. He reached forward to cradle Mark’s face, frowning at a bruise that had blossomed just above his eye, “Does it hurt?” He asked tentatively and Mark scoffed, shaking his head.

“Of course not, It’s fine, Jungwoo.” Mark clarified, needily grabbing at Haechan’s hands and pulling him up to have him sit between his legs. The Omegas were used to this. After something kicked off or a sleazy Alpha hit on one of the Omega’s whilst they were out, the Alphas became very clingy, protective over the Omegas. The Betas always joined in of course, not really having much of a choice, when it came down to the Omegas, they were difficult to ever say no to.

Yuta leaned over Kun who was sliding an arm under his sweater, pressing his face into his side and breathing deeply, to reach Jungwoo, snaking a hand up his back to get his attention.

“Are you okay?” Yuta asked once Jungwoo twisted his head to see him, Doyoung was patient when it came to Jungwoo, he didn’t complain about the wriggling.

“I’m okay.” He agreed, noticing Kun’s hand under Yuta’s sweater and raising an eyebrow, Yuta caught on and leant down to try and meet Kun’s gaze.

“What’s the matter, Kunnie?” Yuta asked softly, trying to calm him with his scent, but stopping momentarily as Kun’s hand slid a little higher under his shirt.

“Y-you smell good.” He replied shortly and Jungwoo noticed how his eyes closed a little longer when he inhaled against Yuta’s chest.

“Hyungie, are you going into Heat?” Jungwoo asked quietly, resting a hand on his arm as Yuta tried to stop him from trailing a hand under the waistband of his jeans.

“Mh, Yuta, you smell so good. I-it hurts.” Kun stuttered and Jungwoo knew that line, he knew that from his own experience. Yuta caught Jungwoo’s eye and nodded, calling Johnny over and immediately catching the scent, Taeyong following close behind him.

“Kun, we need to take you downstairs, okay?” Johnny said softly and Taeyong reached forward to rest a hand on his forehead, noting his change in temperature.

“I want Yuta to take me.” Kun whined and Jungwoo rubbed circles into his back as he began whimpering, on the verge of crying if he didn’t get what he wanted.

“It’s okay, Kunnie, Yuta can take you.” Taeyong said quietly and Kun sniffed in response, curling further into Yuta’s chest as he made to scoop him up in his arms. Jungwoo sighed as Yuta shifted Kun’s weight and began walking towards the basement again, knowing how much Kun hated Heats.

“Yuta, k-kiss me.” Kun whined and Yuta was thankful that the door to the basement had fallen shut behind him because he did not want anyone hearing Kun mumble those words.

“Come on, you need to get to bed.” Yuta responded, knowing very well how to deal with Omegas in Heat, especially Kun.

“Why won’t you kiss me?” Kun whined again and Yuta clicked the latch open to the Omega Heat room, staring down at Kun with a soft smile. He leant down and pressed a soft kiss to his nose, but only received an annoyed whine in response, “Mh, Yuta, kiss me properly!” Kun whined again and Yuta shook his head with a smile, laying Kun down on the King-sized mattress with a soft thump.

“One kiss then I have to go, okay? Do you want my sweater to nest with or is the one you’re wearing enough?” Yuta asked, sitting on the edge of the bed for a moment longer before Kun answered, shifting uncomfortably and reaching for the belt of his jeans.

“I want your sweater, I want you.” Kun cried and Yuta smiled again, taking off his sweater and handing it to him to snuggle into.

“Well, Kunnie, I can only give you one of those.” Yuta replied, pushing Kun’s hair out of his eyes as they fluttered closed for a moment, “Did you still want that kiss?” He asked softly and Kun was sitting up again, gripping at Yuta’s chest and face and shoulders and anything he could reach of Yuta.

“Yes, yes, yes please.” He smiled and Yuta mirrored it before leaning in and kissing him softly. He tried not to get too caught up in it as he cradled Kun’s face, but he really was quite intoxicating. It only lasted another moment or two before Yuta pulled away, rubbing a thumb across his cheekbone, he was losing himself, he needed to leave.

“Now, lay down, close your eyes and count to ten.” Yuta whispered as if telling a secret to Kun’s very Omega. This is what he’d do every Heat and it worked every time, even if the momentary sound of Kun crying broke him every other month. Kun closed his eyes, and began counting out-loud, this time in chinese. He always lost a bit of himself whenever he went into Heat, it was lucky Chenle had taught Yuta the Chinese numbers already. Yuta backed away towards the door, watching as Kun pressed his face further into the scent of Yuta’s sweater, numbers a little muffled now, but Yuta could still work them out. He pulled the Omega door shut behind him as Kun said nine and waited a moment before he locked it. The sobbing came a moment later and Yuta turned the key, resetting the keypad and closing his eyes for a moment as the muffled cries faded from behind the door. Yuta left quickly before he could hear anything else that might break his heart.

 

Jungwoo awoke the following day in Doyoung’s arms. He didn’t remember how he’d gotten there or when he’d gotten there, but he was warm and Doyoung smelt like home. Renjun was in the bed across from him with Chenle beside him, muttering something in quiet Chinese that made Renjun giggle. Jungwoo turned back to Doyoung, pushing his hair back from his face as he was greeted with Doyoung’s arms tightening around him and pulling him into his chest with a sigh.

“Are you okay?” He asked tiredly into Jungwoo’s hair. He smiled in response and tried not to get too caught up in the moment,

“Yeah, did you sleep well?” Jungwoo asked in response and Doyoung scoffed, pulling back a moment to look him in the eye,

“I always sleep better when I’m next to you. Come on, you know that.” He smiled, squeezing Jungwoo’s face between his hands.

The four of them slowly got up and made to take showers Jungwoo momentarily cursing those who could ‘save water and shower together’. It wasn’t like he couldn’t shower with Doyoung he just didn’t like him in anything more than a platonic way and as far as Jungwoo knew, Doyoung thought of him in exactly the same sense. Maybe Jaehyun was having a shower now. Jungwoo immediately pushed the thought from his mind as Johnny came up behind him, lifting the damp towel from his shoulders to dry his hair as he greeted him at the dinner table.

“‘Morning, Hyung.” He murmured into his coffee, wiping his eyes again and smiling up at Taeyong who came to sit beside him, obviously having had some fun either this morning or last night because he was in an unexpectedly good mood and Johnny was positively glowing.

“Have some of this.” Taeyong smiled, offering the marmalade toast to Jungwoo’s lips before he fed the rest to Johnny, who was now connecting the hairdryer to the plug socket.

“Lucas, can you make me a cup of coffee while you’re up?” Chenle called in Chinese and Lucas groaned before nodding and clicking the coffee machine on, making Renjun smile as he pulled Chenle closer into his side.

“Johnny, can I go and check up on Kun?” Yuta asked tentatively. He knew he wasn’t supposed to because it could bring his Rut forward but he knew that Johnny did it with Taeyong and he desperately wanted to see him. Johnny looked at Taeyong for a moment, wondering if he’d speak up about it, but Taeyong simply shrugged and nodded.

“Just be careful, don’t give into him, Yuta.” Johnny added, moving on to begin drying Taeyong’s hair. Yuta nodded and poured two cups of coffee before he made his way to the basement. He was quick to unlock the door, pausing to listen for a minute before he entered.

“Kunnie? I bought you coffee, Johnny said I can sit with you awhile.” Yuta called, placing the cups on the kitchenette counter before advancing further into the room and knocking at the bathroom door, “Kun-ah?” He tried again, only to be offered a silent response. He turned the door handle to the bathroom and waltzed in, calling for Kun’s attention.

“Y-Yuta? Oh god, Yuta.” Kun suddenly replied and Yuta span around to see him slouched against the shower wall with a hand gripped around his cock, eyes drawing in as the water covered for his unruly moans.

“Kun, I thought you’d want coffee, but I see you’re still at it, Hm?” Yuta said with a smile, tearing his socks off and bending down to meet his eyes through the curtain of shower water.

“I want you t-to fuck me.” Kun mumbled and Yuta smiled softly, trying his hardest not to think about the words too intently.

“And I want to eat ice-cream for breakfast but we can’t all have what we want, darling.” Yuta responded, extending his hand for Kun to take so he could get him out of the shower, “Now, when did you last eat?” He asked pulling Kun to his feet and reaching for the faucet to switch the water off and wrap him in a warm towel.

“Y-yesterday.” Kun responded, standing on wobbly legs as he relaxed into Yuta’s gentle touch.

“Okay, well I can't stay long so we’ll have to have cereal or something.” Yuta responded, watching as Kun’s Heat subsided for a little while, maybe long enough to dry his body without him getting hard again.

“Why did you come?” Kun asked, voice quiet but steady as he looked down at the floor, letting Yuta dry off his abdomen and hips. He paused,

“Because I wanted to see you.” He answered honestly and Kun could almost have cried.

“If we just mated, then things wouldn’t be like this, you know.” Kun responded and he didn’t mean for it to sound malicious but the words cut a little deeper than Yuta had liked.

“I-I know.” Yuta responded, continuing to dry his body with the soft towel.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have-” Kun began but, Yuta was wrapping the towel back around his hips and pulling him in to kiss him slowly.

“It’s okay, I’m sorry it’s this hard for you, I really am.” Yuta whispered against his lips and Kun suddenly felt another wave of his Heat hitting him, towel dropping to the floor as his eyes changed to something darker, more pleading. Yuta smiled sadly and guided Kun back to his bedroom, leaving the towel for now.

“Will you eat something before I go?” Yuta tried, smirking as Kun came up behind him to trail his hands over his torso and down to his waistband.

“I have a few things in mind.” Kun said seductively and Yuta shook his head with a laugh, turning around to take Kun’s hands into his own,

“Toast or cereal?” Yuta asked, sitting him down on the bed before turning back to the kitchenette.

“Is there not a third option?” Kun shot back, trailing his eyes down Yuta’s torso and hungrily pausing right on his crotch.

“Let’s go with cereal, then.” Yuta smiled, turning back to find a box of apple jacks in the cupboard and swiping the milk from the fridge. He could feel Kun’s presence again, right behind him and ready to pounce.

“Yuta, please.” He whined, the teasing tone gone as he gripped at Yuta’s hips, pressing his lips to his neck and sucking the skin into his mouth, “Just this once, no one has to know.” He tried, startling Yuta at the quick change of emotions and tactics. Yuta turned around in his hold, melting at the feeling of Kun’s lips and teeth and tongue grazing his collarbone, his jugular, his jaw.

“Kun, come on, you need to eat.” Yuta tried again, voice shaking a little as he became breathless. Johnny was going to kill him.

“Yuta, _please_ , just this once, I’ll do anything. I’ll do anything you want, I’ll be so good for you, Yuta, please.” Kun cried again, eyes filling this time, unshed tears shining in the dimly lit room.

“Fuck,” Yuta whispered, knowing his Alpha was tugging at his senses, begging him to stop fighting it and let him have his way, but he couldn’t, he knew he couldn’t. He reveled in the feeling of Kun trailing his hands up and down his torso, tangling in his hair, catching on his nipples through his thin cotton shirt.

“Hm, please, Yuta. I’ll never ask for anything else of you, I’ll be so good.” Kun whispered and Yuta had lost the last sliver of his self restraint. He gripped his hips harshly and pressed him into the messy bed sheets, already smelling of sweat and slick and cum.

“What do you want?” Yuta asked, Alpha creeping in at an unruly pace and Kun was devouring it, lapping up the attention and begging for more.

“Anything, j-just make me cum, mark me, fuck me, use me.” Kun sobbed, hiccuping as Yuta ran his nails down his chest, catching on his sensitive nipples and making him whine.

“Mh, so good, such a good-” Yuta began, leaning down to begin sucking hickies into his thighs, but a knock came at the door and he was jolted out of the moment.

“Yuta, come on, you’ve been with him a while now.” Johnny's voice came through the door, muffled and dripping with worry.

“Not a good time, Johnny.” Yuta called back, continuing to lean down and suck on Kun’s thighs.

“Yuta if you don’t come out, then I’ll have to come in and I’m sure you don’t want me seeing your little Omega in Heat, do you?” Johnny called again, voice verging on panic as he gripped the door handle with white knuckles.

“Johnny, I said not now!” Yuta growled, voice raised as his Alpha yelled back. Johnny grit his teeth, unlocking the door and entering, without a second thought. He was quick to get Yuta, gripping him around the waist and thanking his lucky stars that he was stronger than Yuta’s Alpha as he thrashed and growled. Kun began to cry and Yuta was manic, desperately trying to get back to him, but Johnny was determined. He dragged Yuta towards the door and shut it quickly, locking it and changing the code before Yuta could see.

Taeyong and Sicheng were outside, ready to receive him as Johnny let him go. He ran back to the Omegas door and began throwing himself against it in attempt at busting the lock, but Johnny knew he wouldn’t get very far before he got tired. Sicheng locked their fingers together and Yuta looked down in shock and disgust at another Omega touching him.

“You took him from me! Give him back, give me back my Kun!” Yuta yelled and Johnny, held his shoulders, looking him in the eyes for a few seconds to try and get through to Yuta and not just his Alpha. Ten appeared on the staircase and Yuta surprised Johnny by running to his side, throwing his arms around Ten’s torso and inhaling his scent. Ten looked up in shock, but Johnny simply shrugged and watched as Yuta slowly came back to them, breathing evened out and voice shaking.

“I-I lost myself didn’t I.” Yuta said quietly, resting his forehead against Ten’s shoulder and willing himself not to cry. Taeyong looked up at Johnny and suddenly he looked as if he might cry too. Taeyong crossed the corridor, wrapping his arms around Johnny's waist and pressing a kiss to the expanse of neck he could reach at this height.

“Let’s go and see if Jeno’s pancakes were a success, Hm?” Ten spoke quietly and Yuta sniffed, pulling away a moment and hiding his face in his sleeve.

“Yeah, let’s go.” He replied sadly and Sicheng began to follow the two of them upstairs, leaving Johnny and Taeyong for a moment.

“It’s not you anymore. You’re different now, Johnny.” Taeyong murmured, a hand gripping his bicep with a soft intensity and wide eyes that made Johnny want to melt.

“I know, I just- I can’t help but think that Yuta might have to go through what I went through. I don’t want him to lose himself.” Johnny replied quietly, not meeting Taeyong’s eyes for even a moment. Taeyong reached up on his toes and pressed a slow kiss to Johnny's lips, surprising him for a fraction of a second.

“He has you and I know you won’t let that happen, baby. Don’t doubt yourself, okay?” Taeyong said quietly and Johnny couldn’t help but smile down at him, pressing another long kiss to his lips before they made to meet the others.

“Okay.” Johnny replied softly and Taeyong smiled at him, too beautiful for him to deny him even the smallest thing.

 

Yuta was sleeping. Yuta was always sleeping since the Kun incident had occurred and no Alpha, Omega or Beta could comfort him. He stayed in his room most days and Chenle would try and crawl into his bed at night to comfort him and hopefully dull his sobs. Yuta had a weakness for Chenle, you see, but Yuta wasn’t having any of it. It had been 5 days now and Johnny had gone down to check on Jaehyun after he’d called up to say his Rut was finished, but Kun’s Heat was still going. Jeno was getting antsy and from the looks of things it was his turn for his Rut, but something wasn’t right. Johnny had marked down every Alpha’s expected Rut and every Omega’s expected Heat on a calendar and Jeno wasn’t due for another 3 weeks, yet Jaemin was insisting he needed to be in the basement the moment Jaehyun got out.

“Hyung, I’m serious, he keeps crawling into my bed at night and scenting me. I wake up smelling like him and it’s making Renjun feel sick. He has to go into Rut.” Jaemin pleaded one morning whilst he sat across the table from Johnny. Mark was sat beside him, nodding along and Johnny couldn’t quite hold his confusion.

“Jeno has three more weeks though. He’s still a new Alpha, he shouldn’t be going into Rut so soon.” Johnny murmured in confusion.

“I know, I just need him to go into Rut, it’s putting me on edge and the other day he even growled at Ten-Hyung because he hugged me. He keeps dragging me away from you guys and kissing me and telling me that I’m his, he’s freaking me out, Hyung.” Jaemin rushed, dropping his head against the table in frustration. Johnny was quiet for a moment. He remembered those days.

“Let’s give it another four days and if he’s still the same then I’ll put him on the self-induced Rut medication that we gave Jaehyun, but give him a few days.” Johnny concluded and Mark smirked as Jaemin whined in annoyance.

 

It was two days later that Jaemin was sat on the couch with Doyoung and Mark, trying his best to concentrate on the English words Mark was teaching them and failing miserably. Jeno had been out all morning doing vocals with Jisung and by lunchtime he arrived in the doorway, not in a familiar state.

“Jaemin, come here.” He growled as soon as he walked in the door and Jaemin frowned, looking between Doyoung and Mark for confirmation before they both nodded and he stood to follow Jeno down the corridor, surprised to see him veer off before their room and into the bathroom.

“What is it Jeno?” Jaemin asked, stepping on the cold tiles and flinching when Jeno slammed the door shut behind him, clicking the lock and pinning him against the wall.

“What did I tell you, Jaemin?” Jeno whispered huskily, leaning in to suck a hickey into the clean expanse of skin. Jeno then reached for his hips, pressing their bodies together for Jaemin to feel the hard-on against his thigh, “I told you that you’re mine. That means you don’t get to play with the other Alphas. So why were you with Doyoung and Mark?” Jeno added, voice dropping low and into a steadier growl as he pressed his thigh into Jaemin’s crotch.

“I- I, Jeno stop, I-” Jaemin tried, but Jeno was devouring his neck, gripping his hips and sliding a hand under his shirt. He’d run out of ideas, he didn’t know how to stop Jeno now, he was stronger and broader and currently in Rut, he could do anything to Jaemin and Jaemin couldn’t stop him. He shivered at the thought. This wasn’t how he wanted it to be. His last idea was swimming to the front of his mind and he hoped to god that it’d work, “Mark!” Jaemin yelled at the top of his lungs and Jeno pulled back, eyes dark and murderous, “Doyoung! H-help!” He tried again and Jeno was clamping a hand over his mouth, manhandling Jaemin so he was sat on the countertop with his legs either side of Jeno’s torso.

“What is it that you think you’re doing here, Jaemin? Is this fun for you? Do you like riling me up?” Jeno growled and Jaemin was momentarily scared because Jeno was an _Alpha._ A real Alpha that could hurt him or mark him or _rape him._  He grit his teeth, eyes watering a little before he tried to call again, putting himself in danger once more, but before he could open his mouth, Yuta was pushing through the door with his shoulder, stumbling in as he stared Jeno up and down.

“Oh god, Hyung, p-please help.” Jaemin whimpered and Yuta was already dragging Jeno away, yelling for Jungwoo and Taeyong to go and comfort Jaemin as Johnny helped take Jeno downstairs.

“Jaemin, are you okay? Oh god, are you hurt, did he hurt you?” Taeyong rushed in, sliding on the tile as he ran to Jaemin’s side, watching his expression before pulling him into his arms and letting him cry. It wasn’t fear, just shock and Jaemin was maybe still a little scared, but he wasn’t a kid.

“You’re alright, I’ve got you,” Taeyong soothed, rubbing slow circles into his back and ushering Doyoung to come in to coax the smell of Jeno away and replace it with his own scent.

 

Johnny locked the door on Jeno and began making his way upstairs again, only to realise that Yuta wasn’t following him.

“Aren’t you coming?” Johnny asked, but Yuta’s eyes were on the Omega Room door where Kun was still living out his Heat. It was almost eight days now and Yuta was more than getting restless.

“Let me stay here a bit.” Yuta replied, eyes still on the door and Johnny paused,

“You do know I changed the passcode?” He asked, unsure as to whether Yuta had remembered that in his Alpha induced state.

“I know, just let me stay down here for a while.” Yuta replied and Johnny looked at him sympathetically. He nodded and began walking back upstairs, ready to apologise to Jaemin with his whole heart.

Yuta sank down the wall, his knees pulled to his chest as he lay his face in his hands.

“Kun, come on, this isn’t fair anymore. I’m losing my mind here.” Yuta murmured, knowing that he wouldn’t hear him but hoping that one of the gods would. Silence was the only reply he was met with and Yuta just wished he could smell him. His bedroom was losing Kun’s usual scent, what with Jeno going into Rut and the Omega’s in a perpetual state of anxiety. This was the first time Kun’s Heat had even lasted longer than five days and it was pulling at every single sense he could identify. He sighed, rubbing his eyes,

“Come on, Kunnie, I can’t do this for much longer.” Yuta whispered once more and he promised himself he wouldn’t cry, but it was becoming harder now.

 

Since Jaehyun had been back with the other members, it’d been a fair balance of awkward conversations and stilted chatter and Jungwoo was really going to lose it. Everyone seemed to be walking on eggshells around Jaehyun, which was understandable, but Jungwoo was starting to feel like everyone was taking his side. He was sitting with Taeil one day when he decided to bring it up.

“Hyung, I just think that it wasn’t his fault and that-” Jungwoo began and Taeil stopped short as he watched him roll his eyes.

“Jungwoo, do you not remember what he said to you? Do you not remember how awful he was to you?” Taeil tried and Sicheng appeared in the doorway, slumping down beside Jungwoo on the couch to feed him crisps.

“Yes, but it was because he was on the verge of his Rut.” Jungwoo tried again and Sicheng turned to him this time.

“Jungwoo, there’s a difference between someone who is late for their Rut and someone who is a dickhead. When Ten was once late for Rut he just got horny and handsy and agitated at anyone who was breathing too loud, but he didn’t snap at the Omega’s and call them out for their sexuality. That is the difference and I know you’re too whipped to see it at the moment, but you need to understand that he did wrong.” Sicheng tried to explain and Taeil was nodding, a serious expression masking his face. Jungwoo sighed and tried not to feel too upset because, in the end, Sicheng was right and he didn’t know what to do with that fact.

 

It was 2:30 in the morning when Johnny was awoken by the sound of Kun’s voice through the monitors. He was quick to slide out of Taeyong’s grip and to knock on Yuta’s door to wake him. Yuta was bouncing on his toes as they went down to check on Kun and much to Johnny’s relief, he assured that his Heat had ended, leaving quickly to give them some time alone together.

“Oh my god, finally.” Yuta breathed, scooping Kun’s tired body up into his arms and holding him close, “We need to get out of here, I’ve missed your scent so much.” Yuta whispered into his hair as he carried Kun out of the Omega room, a blanket covering his body and making him shiver.

“Yuta- fuck- it was so bad.” Kun croaked and Yuta was looking down at him with soft, sympathetic eyes that had Kun curling further into his chest.

“I’m sorry, baby, I really am.” Yuta replied quietly, creeping down the corridor to bring Kun into his bedroom, “Are you still hurting?” He added as the door clicked shut behind them.

“A little,” Kun hummed, voice cracking and watching as Yuta clicked the ensuite bathroom light on to run him a warm bath, “A-are you okay? I’m sorry about the other day, I really should learn to control myself.” Kun whispered unexpectedly and Yuta looked at him with wide eyes as he gently lowered him into the warm water, stripping himself of his nightshirt and boxers before climbing in to sit behind him.

“Kunnie, please don’t apologise. That was entirely my fault and I’m sorry for it all. You were in Heat and I should have controlled myself better, it isn’t you that needs to learn self-restraint.” He replied, pressing a kiss to Kun’s neck and breathing deeply when he reached his scent gland, not being able to contain a groan.

“Hm, you really did miss me, huh?” Kun teased, relaxing back into Yuta’s chest and running his fingers up and down the thighs that bracketed his body.

“I really did think I was going to lose my mind towards the end. You’re never in Heat that long, I lost your scent on everything.” He rasped into Kun’s neck, kissing and suckling the skin tenderly, making Kun keen in submission.

“You have to stop that, you know. Our makeup artists won’t be happy, your Rut will be bought on sooner and you’re going to absolutely reek of my scent.” Kun giggled, interlacing their fingers on his abdomen, but Yuta wasn’t listening. He just needed this moment, just for now, that was all.

“Just be quiet, Kun, I almost went mad without you, so let me have this.” Yuta retorted, making him giggle again and slide further down into the water, silently thanking him for adding an unscented bath soap so he could still smell him.

“Okay, baby, just don’t lose yourself too much, you have a schedule tomorrow.” Kun said quietly, noting the way Yuta began kissing along his jaw in desperation, begging for his lips. He hummed in response and Kun knew that he wasn’t listening.

 

Everything had been going smoothly- well, as smoothly as it does with 7 Alphas, 7 Omegas and 4 Betas living together- until Jaehyun approached Jungwoo on a Sunday morning, a few weeks after he’d finished his Rut. Jungwoo had done a splendid job of avoiding him for this long, but he knew he’d eventually have to face him, he’d heard Mark say that to Haechan one evening.

“Are you still angry with me?” Jaehyun asked, flipping a pancake with ease and catching Jungwoo off guard. You see, he wasn’t completely awake and the mug of coffee that Taeyong had made him hadn’t yet kicked in, but now he was aware that the two of them were alone in the kitchen.

“No, in fact, I might be the only person who _isn’t_ still angry with you.” Jungwoo replied drearily and he was so close to adding the words _‘So get off your high horse and stop moping around like a pathetic dickhead’_ , but knew that it wasn’t exactly the best way to win over an Alpha’s heart. Jaehyun sighed quietly, but Jungwoo pretended not to hear it.

“So, the others still hate me?” Jaehyun asked quietly, sliding the pancake onto Jungwoo’s plate and making him frown. _Was that an edible peace offering?_

“Jaehyun, they don’t hate you, they’re just protective of me. They’re protective of all the Omega’s, so don’t go around thinking that you’re some ‘god of the Alpha’s’, because deep down we all know that you have some serious problems you need to work out for yourself- starting with the internalized homophobia.” Jungwoo tried, grabbing the pancake-peace-offering and leaving to go to his room. There was no way he’d turn down food.

“I’m not homophobic though-” Jaehyun began, but Jungwoo was calling over his shoulder and cutting him off, not caring for a moment about the way he’d ended the conversation.

“That is exactly the sort of thing a homophobe would say, Jaehyun.” He called back, swiping the bottle of maple syrup as he left.

 

Sicheng had fallen asleep in Ten’s lap for the fifth time that week and Haechan was getting suspicious. Johnny had noticed it as well, the change of scents, the clingy behaviour and the possible nesting instincts. Sicheng was avoiding the subject though and once again, Johnny noticed that his Heat was arriving 3 weeks early, just like Jeno’s and Kun’s had. Taeyong had been stressing over the schedules that needed changing due to all of their early Heats and Ruts and Johnny was being put on edge from the smell of Taeyong’s anxiety and the responsibility of keeping the group safe and in good health.

“Hyung, you-you’re scent, it’s throwing me off,” Jaemin admitted one evening as he bumped into Johnny in the kitchen, making Taeyong something to eat to try and ease his anxiety.

“I know, Jaemin, I’m sorry. Have you gone to see Doyoung? I know how much his scent helps you all out.” Johnny replied, shoulders tense and squared as he turned to face Jaemin.

“I’ll see him in a bit,” He paused, staring at Johnny for a moment, studying his pained expression, “If there’s anything we can do to help, then you just have to let us know. We might be younger, but that doesn’t make us any less useful. I can see you and Taeyong are struggling.” Jaemin finished quietly and Johnny smiled softly, pulling him into his arms briefly before Jaemin started to cough a little viciously.

“Thanks, Jaemin, you should go and see Doyoung now, though.” Johnny said quietly, turning back to the frying pan on the stove as Jaemin began to walk away. Maybe he really wasn’t as good at all this as he thought. Taeyong appeared not long after Jaemin had left, wrapping his arms around Johnny’s waist and pressing his face into his shoulder blades.

“This is so difficult.” Taeyong mumbled, voice shaking a little and Johnny could smell that something was wrong. He switched the stove off, turning around in Taeyong’s hold and pulling him into his chest, pressing kisses to the crown of his head and holding him tightly.

“I know, baby, it’ll be alright. Trust me, okay?” Johnny replied, voice weak and shaking the same amount as Taeyong’s.

“You should tell your scent that, it’s making me mad.” He spoke softly, looking up at Johnny through his eyelashes and making Johnny scoff a little.

“I’m sorry, it’s been putting Jaemin on edge as well. I can’t help it.” He leant down, pressing a kiss to Taeyong’s nose and smiling softly, letting out a weak pheromone in an attempt to calm Taeyong, “Better?” He asked and Taeyong was relaxing in his hold, pressing his face into his scent gland and holding him close.

“Better than a moment ago, yes.” He mumbled, pressing his lips to Johnny’s collarbone and staying put for a moment longer, smiling as Johnny held him tighter. What neither of them had noticed was Jaehyun in the doorway.

 

Jungwoo was pacing. He could feel something was wrong, but he couldn’t place it. Doyoung was sitting with Taeil and Chenle on the couch, arms crossed as they stared up at him in disinterest.

“Jungwoo, just sit down. Everyone’s just having a difficult time with Heats and Ruts, it’s probably just Taeyong and Johnny’s scents that you’re smelling.” Doyoung spoke, irritation creeping into his voice and Chenle frowned at him.

“No, Hyung, I smell it too. Jaemin had to ask Johnny to try and control his scent a little more because it was keeping us both up at night and this isn’t the same smell.” Chenle tried and Jungwoo paused a moment to smile down at him. Taeil was frowning, looking between the three of them in confusion.

“Come to think of it, Haechan also said something about it when we were out for dinner. Mark said the same as you, Doyoung.” Taeil commented, frowning at the memory. Doyoung sighed again and Chenle shifted at the change of scent, Doyoung noticed.

“Well then what is it?” Doyoung asked, a little exasperated now as he stared between the three of them. Jungwoo took a deep breath,

“I think it’s Jaehyun.” He finally got out, Taeil and Doyoung scoffing at the words.

“Jungwoo, that’s just because you’re hung up on him.” Doyoung said, shaking his head in annoyance. Taeil scrunched his face, not knowing whether to agree or not.

“No, I’m serious, I think there’s something wrong.” Jungwoo tried again and Chenle settled on keeping his mouth shut for now. Doyoung stood up, gripping Jungwoo’s shoulders in his hands and staring deep into his eyes.

“Jungwoo, listen, he’s already gone through his Rut. He isn’t due for another four months, so it can’t be-” Doyoung began, but the sound of scrambling feet was suddenly interrupting him as Renjun appeared in the doorway, eyes wide and glassy as he looked between the four of them.

“It’s Jaehyun,” Doyoung dropped his hands from Jungwoo’s shoulders to look at Renjun, breathless and panicked in the doorway. Taeil stood up and Chenle closed off a little, anxiety creeping around his spine, “He’s gone.”


	2. Chapter 2

Johnny knew that missing persons reports were made for Betas and humans, but he was getting desperate. The apartment reeked of anxiety and the Omegas couldn’t stay in a room with more than one other Alpha without passing out from the stench. Usually after 24 hours, the person who had disappeared was officially marked as missing, but it had now been 72 hours since anyone had seen him and Johnny, Doyoung, Yuta and Ten hadn’t slept. The Omegas were set on social media look out, it being too dangerous for them to go looking with the other Alphas in a state of vulnerability, but they were doing a good job of keeping the Alphas updated regularly.

On the first day, Chenle had called Jaehyun’s parents, telling them to call back if they heard anything from him.

On the second day, Haechan stumbled across a fan-photo that had been taken in Japan of someone who looked suspiciously like Jaehyun. Johnny, Doyoung and Yuta had got the next plane leaving for Osaka.

On the third day, Kun found Taeyong passed out on the kitchen floor and all of them vowed not to tell Johnny.

It was the fourth day that anything good occurred- that was, in fact, a matter of perspective, but not up for discussion- as Jungwoo went into Heat. Lucas had found him sobbing in a cold shower at 5 am and was quick to call Ten to help him take Jungwoo down to the basement. It was lucky Jungwoo had gone into Heat because, in all honesty, he was driving everyone to the point of madness. Mark had tried to help him calm down enough to sleep and failed every night, Chenle was getting irritated and restless from the constant whines when he was finally asleep and Jeno was antsy the moment Jungwoo entered the same room as him. Ten was better at controlling himself when it came to Jungwoo’s scent, but Mark and Jeno, not so much. Haechan had stopped Mark from growling at him twice now and Jaemin was constantly having to lock Jeno in the bathroom or in his bedroom in an attempt to stop him from scenting Jungwoo in front of everyone. The Betas were doing a good job of keeping the Omegas in check, yet Kun and Taeyong were beginning to get emotional on the days their Alphas were in Japan and away from home. The younger Omegas were also beginning to miss Doyoung’s scent and his sweaters were just beginning to smell like their own scents now. Once Jungwoo was in Heat, however, the Omegas seemed to calm a little- considerably more than the Betas had expected.

It was the sixth day after Jaehyun’s disappearance that they heard back from Johnny, Yuta and Doyoung in Japan. Taeyong and Kun were the first to answer the call, sliding down the hallway to grab the TV remote to open up the skype call.

“Johnny! When are you coming back?” Taeyong was calling, not even acknowledging Doyoung and Yuta sat beside him on the screen. Johnny smiled at him fondly, but there was a sad glint in his eyes. Kun was staring at Yuta in awe, smiling at him in 720p.

“Hello baby. It’ll be awhile I think, Taeyongie. I’m sorry.” Johnny said quietly and even through the broken reception he could see Taeyong’s heart break a little, face falling and eyes dropping to the couch for a moment. The rest of the group was slowly piling into the living room and Taeyong looked like he might cry. Ten was the first to notice.

“We haven’t found him yet and he could be anywhere by now. We don’t have any leads from here.” Doyoung replied, voice a little choked and the room fell silent as Taeyong left, walking to his bedroom with light footsteps. Ten shared a look with Johnny through the screen and nodded curtly before following Taeyong down the hall.

“Where’s Jungwoo?” Yuta suddenly asked and for a deadly moment the three of them thought the worst, but Mark smiled softly and shook his head,

“It’s okay, he went into Heat a day or so ago. Lucas found him just in time.” He explained and the three of them visibly relaxed, sighing in relief. Chenle spoke up this time,

“It was lucky he did, we were all getting so restless with him around.” He spoke and Jeno nodded in agreement, Jaemin sitting between his knees and interlocking their fingers.

“His scent was driving us mad.” Mark agreed and Yuta nodded as if he understood. Kun stared at him for a moment longer and Yuta smiled at him through the digital screen.

“Can you call me, Yuta?” Kun suddenly spoke up and the group fell silent. They’d decided to cut direct or private communication in case it’d gotten traced in an attempt at finding Jaehyun, but it was clear that Kun and Taeyong were getting tired of this.

“Kunnie, you know we can’t do th-” Yuta began but Johnny was cutting him off, eyes downcast and face falling as he stopped Yuta’s explanation.

“Yes, he can call you. You can call us privately now, it’s clear that we can’t keep this up.” Johnny said quietly and silence followed, only Kun smiling up at the screen. The call ended not long after and Kun was running to his bedroom, desperate to see Yuta once more. Jaemin and Jeno decided to check up on how Ten was progressing with Taeyong, knocking on the bedroom door and frowning as they found Ten sitting with his back against the ensuite bathroom door.

“Is-is he okay?” Jeno tried tentatively, but Jaemin was rushing forward, falling to his knees in front of the door. Ten got up from where he was sat to stand beside Jeno.

“No, not really.” Ten replied, voice riddled with sadness as they watched Jaemin sit with his ear to the door, trying to whisper things to Taeyong.

“He’s nesting.” Jaemin called to them, Ten and Jeno exchanging a look before reaching for Taeyong’s phone and handing it to Jaemin, “Do you think Johnny-Hyung will pick up?” he asked warily and Ten nodded at the phone, telling him to try. It rang two and a half tones before Johnny’s voice cut in, panicked through the speaker as Jaemin held it to his ear.

“Taeyong? Oh my god, I-” He began, but Jaemin was interrupting him, resting a palm against the bathroom door in the hopes that Taeyong could hear them.

“Hyung, it’s me, Jaemin.” He spoke, pausing a moment to gather his thoughts, “Taeyong-Hyung is nesting and he’s not coming out of the bathroom.” It wasn’t like they hadn’t seen Taeyong nest before, it was just that Johnny normally dealt with it and they weren’t familiar with Taeyong’s habits. Johnny sighed through the speaker and Jaemin could almost smell his anxiety.

“He usually nests in the bathroom, so don’t worry about that. Put me on speaker, Jaemin.” He explained, running a hand over his face in frustration. It was difficult to get Taeyong to unlock the door when he was like this, but even more so when Taeyong knew that Johnny wouldn’t be on the other side of the door to greet him. Jaemin tapped the speaker button and placed it on the floor at the gap between the carpet and door wedge. “Thanks for looking after him, I’ll take it from here,” Johnny spoke through the speaker, Jeno and Ten nodding, Jaemin getting to his feet and whispering a goodbye to Taeyong. Johnny listened for the sound of the bedroom door clicking shut before he spoke and if he listened carefully, he could hear the faint sound of Taeyong’s muffled sobs, “Taeyongie? Can you hear me?” He asked softly, listening carefully as the sobs subsided for a fraction of a moment, “You’re nesting, right? Well, I know it’s going to be difficult, baby, but can you pick up the phone? Can you unlock the door and talk to me?” Johnny tried, not even convincing himself that this might work.

“... not here, you’re not here.” Taeyong’s voice came out muffled and stuttered and if Johnny hadn’t have been concentrating he would have missed it.

“I know, baby, I know.” He swallowed dryly, trying not to cry, “But I want to talk to you, I miss you and I need to hear your voice, please, Taeyong-ah.” Johnny tried again and the sound of the bathroom latch clicking open was music to his ears. He could almost cry in relief, noticing how the sound of his voice was no longer echoing across the room, but being switched off of speaker mode.

“I’m here.” Taeyong whispered into the phone, leaning against the door with his knees pulled to his chest, smiling sadly at Johnny’s relieved sigh.

“Oh, Taeyong, I missed your voice so much. Are you okay? Just breathe for me, okay, baby?” Johnny said quietly, keeping his voice steady and clear, something for Taeyong to focus on.

“I’m n-not okay, I-I want you to come home.” He whispered unsteadily, breaths coming out unsteady and verging on hyperventilation.

“I know, darling, just breathe with me, okay? Concentrate on my voice.” Johnny replied, trying to push any anxiety out of his voice as he leant back on his hotel bed, closing his eyes to try and bring him peace of mind.

“Please come home, Johnny, I h-hate this.” Taeyong mumbled back and Johnny’s heart was tearing in two. He hated this as well, but they had to find Jaehyun, they had to bring him back.

“I’ll be back with you before you know it, baby.” He replied, hating the fact that he’d lied to his Taeyongie. He wasn’t surprised when Taeyong began to cry again, it was better than hearing him plead to have him back.

 

Jungwoo was on his third day of Heat, thrashing in his bedsheets and twisting in his sleep as he was awoken by another bought of searing hot pain. His knuckles were pushed to his mouth, knowing there was no need for him to stifle his moans, but doing so on instinct. It was a short burst and his body convulsed as he tried to recover, only to be hit with another wave, this time stronger and more fierce than before, slick seeping down his thighs,

“F-fuck! Oh god, _Jaehyun_.” Jungwoo moaned and suddenly he was panicking, throwing a hand to his mouth in shock. He’d never moaned anyone’s name whilst in Heat, but it was even worse to moan the very person's name that you were supposed to be getting over. He groaned to himself in annoyance, throwing his head back as the Heat took over his body once again, not letting him have a moment to even feel embarrassed. This was worse than before, this was a different sort of Heat. A Heat where he thought of someone whilst he touched himself. A Heat where he ran his hands down his body, imagining they were a certain person and not just some faceless Alpha. He was too far gone, too desperate, too hung up on Jaehyun. This could never end well, Jungwoo knew that, yet he indulged himself, let the name play around in his mouth, sinfully slide between his lips. It was true- he’d never learn- but the name felt as good as all the bad things Jaehyun could do to him and Jungwoo wouldn’t let that be taken from him. His innocence was much too far gone for that sort of behaviour, yet something was becoming of it. It’d be mad if Jaehyun were to ever hear him, there was no way, no possibility, even if they were in the very same house, but Johnny, Yuta and Doyoung’s tracking was being guided back to Seoul, back to Gangnam, back to their apartment. Jaehyun was coming back on his own accord.

 

Johnny knocked at the door, Yuta and Doyoung tiredly standing beside him. Their flight had been delayed and by this point they’d lost track of Jaehyun, only knowing that he was back in Gangnam. Taeyong and Kun were the first to get to the door, pushing everyone else aside before unlatching it and throwing themselves into Yuta and Johnny’s arms. Doyoung laughed between them and smiled as Jisung collapsed into his arms telling him how much he missed them.

“Jungwoo’s still in Heat?” Doyoung asked as they all began entering the living room, Lucas and Mark dragging their suitcases into the hallway and leaving Taeyong and Johnny outside for a moment.

“Yeah, hopefully it’ll be over soon,” Renjun replied, changing seats as Kun collapsed in Yuta’s lap beside him, “He missed you.” He added, letting Chenle sit between his legs as they all settled in the living room, planning to order take-out.

Outside, Taeyong was standing on the doorstep, still staring at Johnny, gripping his face between his smaller hands and blinking up at him with a smile.

“I-I missed you so much.” He whispered, eyes sparkling and Johnny knew him too well to not notice that he was wearing his sweater, face stained with dry tear tracks.

“I missed you too, baby. Oh god, I was so worried about you, come here.” Johnny replied, pulling Taeyong into his arms for the millionth time and discreetly scenting him, running his hands up and down his back and tangling them in his hair.

“Fuck, can we just get out of here for tonight, just one night? I’ll book a hotel room and-” Taeyong began, but Johnny was kissing his neck and pulling away to interrupt him.

“You know we can’t, darling. We both have duties and we haven’t even found Jaehyun yet. I want to as much as you do, but we have to stay with the others, you’re the leader and I have to keep the Alpha’s in check, not to mention that Jungwoo’s in Heat at the moment. It’s already bad enough that I was gone for this long, I’m sorry, baby.” Johnny explained, heart hurting as he watched the hope drain from Taeyong’s face. He nodded in understanding,

“It’s okay, It was worth a try anyway.” Taeyong smiled softly and Johnny suddenly realised he was shivering in the cold Autumn air. He pulled him back into his arms and hoisted his legs up to wrap around his waist, carrying him inside and kicking the door shut behind him.

“Come on, the others are probably waiting. I’ll say hello then we can go and nap together, okay?” Johnny whispered into Taeyong’s hair, tilting his head aside for Taeyong to continue his assault of hickies on his neck. On arriving in their room, Johnny lay his lithe body down on their bed, expecting to kiss him quick and leave to greet everyone, but Taeyong was pulling him down, wrapping his arms around his neck and chasing after his lips, desperate to kiss him, feel him.

“Don’t leave me now.” Taeyong mumbled against his lips, a string of saliva joining them at the mouth, “I’ve waited so long, don’t leave me for even a moment.” He whispered again and Johnny was giving in, leaning down to lick and bite at his sensitive neck, sliding his hands under the sweater Taeyong was wearing and caressing his soft skin.

“I’m here, I’m here.” Johnny mumbled, into his skin, staring up at his sinful expression from merely neck-kisses and hickies, “I’m not going anywhere, baby.” He added and it felt so good to not lie to his Taeyong-ah.

 

Jungwoo was on his seventh day of Heat and Kun was nominated to go down and check on him, Yuta standing guard outside the room. It was rare for Omegas to exceed six days, but this was now the second member to exceed it. Kun pushed the door open, immediately noticing Jungwoo curled up on the king-sized bed, breathing evenly as he slept.

“Woo-ah? Are you awake?” Kun asked, gently shaking his shoulder as he knelt down beside the bed, avoiding touching the sheets. Jungwoo stirred and began mumbling incoherent sentences, making Kun smile, “Come on, Jungwoo, we have to talk.” He tried again and Kun watched with a frown as Jungwoo suddenly broke off into a guttural moan, hips stuttering against the mattress as he pulled a pillow beneath his chest, burying his face into the fabric and rutting underneath the sheets.

“J-Jaehyun-ah! _F-fuck, please_.” Jungwoo suddenly stuttered out, still unconscious and moaning desperately into the pillow.

“Yuta? Come here a second,” Kun called, still trying to shake Jungwoo awake and failing miserably, “Something’s not right.” Yuta appeared in the doorway, frowning and coming to meet Kun who was standing beside Jungwoo’s figure.

“Get Johnny,” Yuta said quietly, “You’re right, this isn’t normal.” He added, leaning down to rest the back of his hand on Jungwoo’s hand and pulling away as if being burned, hissing in pain.

“What is it? What happened?” Kun ran back to his side, taking his hand into his own and inspecting the skin that Yuta had made contact with Jungwoo’s skin. It was purple, bruised and mottled green mixed against his skin.

“What the fuck.” Yuta whispered in shock, Johnny appearing at the door a moment later with Lucas and Ten following close behind.

“What happened?” Johnny questioned, rushing forward and taking Yuta’s bruised hand into his own to inspect the damage, “How did this happen?” Kun frowned, reaching out to touch Jungwoo’s skin again, brushing off Yuta who was trying to stop him.

“Kun stop! His-his skin bruised me, I went to check his temperature, but it was like he burnt me and then this happened.” Yuta explained, unaware that Kun was now resting his hand- in the very place Yuta had touched- and not flinching away.

“Hyung, stop it! Yuta-Hyung said it hurt him!” Lucas yelped, bringing everyone’s attention back to Kun and Jungwoo. Kun pulled back slightly, lifting his hand to show them the unbruised skin with a frown,

“He didn’t do it to me.” Kun said quietly, inspecting his hand and reaching forward again to place his hand on Jungwoo’s bicep, trying again to wake him, “He’s been calling for Jaehyun.” He added, looking up just in time to see Johnny and Ten exchange a look.

“We have to find him, don’t we.” Lucas commented and Johnny sighed, knowing that they had to find him soon or Jungwoo would get sick. He knew what this was.

“Jaehyun must have started a bond with Jungwoo without realising.” He finally spoke up, looking down at Jungwoo as he brokenly moaned the two syllables of Jaehyun’s name, rolling his hips upwards, “He’s trying to call for Jungwoo, but he can’t respond because he’s in Heat, so in order of protecting Jungwoo from other Alpha’s while he’s away, he’s channelled that energy to hurt any Alpha’s that dare approach him.” Johnny explained and Ten sighed, remembering learning about this when he was younger and knowing how even though it may be rare, it still happened.

“So what do we do now?” Kun asked, cradling Jungwoo’s face and looking up at Johnny with wide eyes. Ten replied this time,

“We have to find Jaehyun as soon as possible. Jungwoo is starting to lose himself already.”

 

That very evening, Johnny gathered the five other Alpha’s and four Betas in the living room, sending two Omega’s down to stay with Jungwoo at a time. He was quick in organising pairs- one Alpha and one Beta for four of them and two solo Alphas- to scan places throughout their town, flashlights, blankets and phones in hand in the event of them finding Jaehyun.

“Taeyong, I won’t be back until we find him,” Johnny grabbed him before he left, kissing him softly, “Don’t wait up, oh, and look after the little kids, Chenle is starting to smell anxious. Call us if anything happens, okay?” He added, gripping Taeyong’s face a moment longer and kissing him firmly. The 10 of them left in a flurry and Taeyong was suddenly scared. The house was filled with seven Omegas, that was it. He momentarily wondered if anyone would smell them, but quickly pushed the thought aside as Kun came up behind him, asking him to take over from Haechan and Sicheng with Chenle. He nodded, taking Chenle’s hand as he guided them downstairs, helping him get comfortable on the couch beside Jungwoo’s bed.

“Do you want something to drink, Chenle?” Taeyong asked, flicking the kettle on in the kitchenette and staring Jungwoo over as he flipped onto his back, hands stretched above his head in submission. Chenle didn’t answer and Taeyong turned back to him, studying his frightened expression, “Chenle?”

“Is this going to happen to me?” He asked, voice shaky and unsteady and Taeyong was quick to come back and sit beside him, pulling him into his side for comfort,

“No, Chenle, this is really rare. It hardly ever happens, but Jungwoo and Jaehyun just happened to be the ones who have to deal with it. It doesn’t happen with everyone.” Taeyong explained, tucking Chenle’s head beneath his chin as he leant back, rubbing his arms rhythmically to try and stop him from crying too hard.

“But what about you and Johnny-Hyung?” Chenle asked and Taeyong’s hand paused on his back, frowning at the question.

“What about me and Johnny?” He asked Chenle and for a moment Taeyong thought maybe he’d decided to drop the subject, but he shifted, pulling at a loose cotton on the pocket of Taeyong’s jeans.

“Well, Johnny used to be-” He cut off, not knowing how to phrase it without hurting Taeyong’s feelings, “He used to be more of his Alpha than he was Johnny, right?” He tried and Taeyong smiled softly, making eye contact with him over the plane of his chest.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right, but he got better and we helped him become Johnny, didn’t we.” Taeyong explained and Chenle nodded, breaking the eye contact to lay his head back on his chest, “Besides, not all Alpha’s are like that, like Jeno. He’s still Jeno, even if he does have some trouble containing his Alpha at times. Johnny just wasn’t able to differentiate the two, back when I first met him. He didn’t even know he had the Johnny side of him, but look how far he’s come. He’d never do anything to hurt any of you Omegas, or me.” Taeyong continued, remembering Johnny back when they’d first met, it was strange to think they were the same person.

“What if I meet an Alpha who rejects me, like Jaehyun-Hyung did to Jungwoo-Hyung?” Chenle asked tentatively, watching as Jungwoo’s chest rose and fell rapidly from the exertion.

“Then you’ll find someone who loves you more, or maybe the person who rejected you will come back and fall at your feet, begging for forgiveness.” Taeyong giggled, “Much like Jaehyun will be doing once he gets back.” Chenle smiled, but his head was still spinning and all he had to ground himself was Taeyong’s arms around him.

“Hyung, can I ask something else?” Chenle asked quietly and Taeyong hummed, “How do I know if I’m gay?” He mumbled and Taeyong was smiling again, not one bit fazed by the question.

“Chenle, just because you’re an Omega, it doesn’t mean you have to be gay. Your sexual identity and breed identity don’t have to overlap-” Taeyong began, but Chenle was shaking his head and moving to look at Taeyong again.

“No, I know that, Hyung. I just think that I might like boys.” He paused, voice shaking a little, but recovering quickly, “It’s just that when I showed as an Omega, my parents still thought they had a chance of an Alpha girl for me, but I don’t- don’t want an Alpha girl.” He tried to explain and Taeyong nodded, understanding what he meant.

“Well, I think you already know your answer to that question. If you like boys, then you like boys- it’s that easy- and even if you change your mind and find out you might like girls as well, then that’s okay. You don’t have to stick to a label, you’re not a can of soup, Chenle.” Taeyong responded, feeling Chenle relax in his arms, pressing his face into his chest as they lay on the couch together, silence settling in the room before Jungwoo’s bedroom door bust open, startling them both.

“Jaemin? Jesus, you scared-” Taeyong began, untangling himself from Chenle and standing to meet him at the doorway.

“-Hyung, Jaehyun-Hyung is in the house.” Jaemin yelped, breathless and panicked.

“Jaemin, calm down. The Alpha’s found him already?” Taeyong asked, trying to get Jaemin to catch his breath, but he was shaking his head furiously.

“No, no, you don’t get it. Jaehyun is _here_ \- the Alpha’s are still out looking for him.” Jaemin tried to explain and suddenly Taeyong understood. Jaehyun could smell that there was no Alpha’s in the house and had broken in. He pulled his phone out of his pocket, handing it to Jaemin,

“Stay down here, I’m going to send Haechan down. Call Johnny right now.” He rushed out, pushing Jaemin into the room towards Chenle and bolting up the stairs to the living room, if they could still call it that.

“Jaehyun, stop!” Sicheng was screaming and once Taeyong had found where the voice was coming from he saw why screaming was necessary. Jaehyun had Kun pinned to the kitchen table, hands sliding up his sides and under his shirt, Taeyong sprung into action. Sicheng was trying his best to pull Jaehyun away, Kun scrambling in his grip, desperately trying to get free and Taeyong was pointing for Haechan to get downstairs.

“Jaehyun, listen to me, it’s Taeyong.” He spoke calmly, raising his hands in surrender and approaching him slowly, wondering if his tactics with Johnny would work with Jaehyun as well. Kun was breathing heavily, chest heaving as Jaehyun held him down with his whole body, but Taeyong was successful in getting Jaehyun’s attention long enough for Sicheng to grab a saucepan from the counter, bringing it down as hard as he could on Jaehyun’s head. The room was silent for a moment and neither Taeyong nor Sicheng moved from where they were, Kun was gasping for air now, strangled breaths coming short and unsteady. Jaehyun turned slowly towards Sicheng, suddenly gripping him by the hips and pinning him beside Kun, a hand on Sicheng’s throat and his knee pressing down on Kun’s chest, making him see stars. Taeyong had his answer- Jaehyun would not respond to the same tactics Johnny did.

“Jaehyun, let them go.” He grit out, watching in horror as Jaehyun leant back on Kun’s body, knee shifting on his chest and making his arms fall limp from the loss of oxygen, reaching for Sicheng’s crotch as he held him down by the throat, “No! Jaehyun, please, no!” Taeyong screeched, trying his best to drag him from Kun’s body, desperate to see Kun breathing again. It was not the moment to think it, but Taeyong wondered how Johnny would deal with the problem if he were an Omega, but his brain wasn’t functioning seeing Kun without oxygen for so long. Sicheng was choking now, scrambling, one hand on Jaehyun’s wrist as he limited his oxygen supply and the other on his thigh in an attempt to stop him from pressing down on Kun’s chest. Taeyong wasn’t strong enough for this, every frantic punch he threw, every effort he put in to drag Jaehyun’s body away from the two younger Omega’s was dismissed and before he could comprehend what was happening, Jaehyun was growling viciously and using his strength to kick back, hitting Taeyong square in the chest and causing him to fall back against the cupboards, instantly knocking him out. Sicheng watched it happen, not being able to do anything as his vision began to fade, the hand on his throat tightening as he heard the sound of voices and somewhere in the distance, everything turning to black before he could identify the voices.

 

Johnny was frantic, yelling orders as he grabbed Jaehyun around the waist, dragging him off the two Omegas with strength he didn’t know he even possessed. Taeil and Yuta were quick to grab Jaehyun, along with Johnny, dragging his thrashing body down to the basement, Johnny growling out a threat that had even Taeil shaking.

“Get them all conscious, I’ll fucking kill him if they don’t wake up without me having to call the medics out.” Johnny yelled back over his shoulder and Mark was gritting his teeth, cradling Sicheng’s head in his lap once Doyoung and Ten had moved him and Kun to the floor. Yuta was positively seething beside him, but he knew that Doyoung would take good care of Kun while they were gone.

“Kids, get upstairs, look after the other three and don’t come back d- Fuck- down.” Taeil yelled at the Omega’s sitting beside Jungwoo’s bed, cursing when Jaehyun began frantically thrashing in their hold at the sight of more Omegas.

“Send Lucas down as well.” Yuta yelled as they entered the Omega room, Jungwoo tossing and turning in bed now, body convulsing and acting on its own will.

“J-Jaehyun! _Fuck, ye-yes!_ Please, Jaehy-” Jungwoo was moaning out and Johnny noticed how much louder he was than he had been before they’d all left. Jaehyun growled, pulling away from the three of them with all the strength he had,

“Yu-Yuta, touch Jungwoo’s arm again!” Johnny screamed, gripping Jaehyun for all his worth.

“Why-” Yuta began, but Johnny’s face was darker and angry.

“Just do as I say!” Johnny yelled, Taeil momentarily losing his grip on Jaehyun’s arm, but Yuta was touching Jungwoo’s arm and Jaehyun was falling to the floor, screaming in pain.

“Ah! Jungwoo, I need to get to J-” Jaehyun cried, clutching his chest in pain as Yuta kept his hand on Jungwoo’s arm, bruises blossoming on his skin.

“Jaehyun, listen to me, you’re here. Stop fighting us.” Johnny yelled, holding Jaehyun to the floor until Lucas appeared in the doorway with a set of chains, dragging the armchair from the corner of the room and placing it in view of Jungwoo’s bed.

“Jaehyun, this is going to hurt, but you have to stick it out, okay?” Yuta spoke, letting go of Jungwoo’s arm to help lift Jaehyun onto the chair, binding his hands and arms to the chair. Taeil reached for the padlock, clicking it locked behind the chair out of Jaehyun’s reach.

“P-please, let me go, I didn’t mean to- this isn’t me, Hyung! You know that!” Jaehyun suddenly cried, Alpha fading to the back of his mind as his eyes fell on Jungwoo’s pained expression across from him.

“I know, I know it’s not you, but you still have to get Jungwoo back and we’d all rather you did that without having to rape him, Jaehyun.” Johnny explained, leaning back and looking down at him with a pitiful gaze. Yuta swallowed and Lucas watched as Jungwoo’s moans became something closer to pain now, he was crying, begging for help. Taeil was finding it difficult to focus on anything and Johnny was suddenly hit by a wave of emotion. He stepped back, taking the key from Lucas and walking towards the door, letting the others leave before he pulled the door shut behind him, hating the way Jaehyun stared at him with those glassy eyes, voice shaking as he begged Johnny to let him go.

 

“Where is he? Where is Taeyong?” Johnny yelled, the moment he was on the first floor again, running past the younger Omegas who’d been sat with Jungwoo earlier. Doyoung grabbed him by the shoulders, stopping him from advancing any further and looking at him with a stern expression,

“Johnny, quiet. He’s in your room, just keep your voice down, everyone is pretty shaken up.” Doyoung said harshly, “All three of them really do need to be checked out by a doctor, but that’s not exactly an-” Johnny cut him off, pushing past him and running down the corridor, almost colliding with Ten and Yuta who were rushing towards Kun’s room.

“Let me see him, Doyoung.” He grit out, voice shaking and weak as if he were crying, come to think of it, maybe he was.

“Johnny, just calm down fir-” Doyoung began, but Johnny was already pushing through their bedroom door and running to his bedside, leaving Doyoung sighing in exasperation.

“T-Taeyong, baby?” Johnny called, eyes falling to his bed where Taeyong lay, skin several shades paler and a damp towel laying across his forehead. His flannel shirt was unbuttoned and opened, showing a dark purple bruise where Jaehyun must have kicked him. As soon as Johnny had entered the room Taeyong had stirred, his scent wrapping around him and bringing him back to consciousness.

“J-Johnny?” Taeyong choked out and Doyoung stood in the doorway a moment longer, sighing in defeat as he watched Johnny fall to his knees, crying into Taeyong’s neck.

“I’ll give you both some time, but please be careful, Johnny. He had a pretty bad head injury and was nastily winded.” Doyoung explained, shutting the door after Johnny nodded his thanks.

“Baby, wh-where does it hurt?” Johnny stuttered, wiping his tears on the back of his hand and leaning down to gently cradle Taeyong’s face, holding him as if he might break.

“E-everywhere,” He rasped, weakly reaching his hand up to place atop Johnny’s, “L-lay with me?” He asked quietly, eyes closing and opening, too slow to be able to deem him completely conscious. Johnny nodded, removing his hands from his face and pulling back the blankets to slide into bed beside him.

“Are you comfortable?” Johnny mumbled, letting Taeyong move his head to rest it on his chest, pressing his nose into Johnny’s neck. Taeyong hummed his response and Johnny smiled, pulling his arms around his tiny waist to hold his body closer.

“C-can I scent you?” Taeyong asked, voice hesitant and shaky, but Johnny was smiling and pressing gentle kisses to the crown of his head.

“Of course, baby.” Johnny whispered, pressing his head further back into the pillow beneath him to give Taeyong a little more space to turn his face into. Taeyong never scented his Alpha like the other Omegas, in fact, it was rare for Omegas to even scent Alphas in the first place, but it was one of Taeyong’s favourite past-times. The best part of Taeyong doing the scenting was that he liked to change things up, liked to rile Johnny up and graze his teeth over his collarbone, or suck the supple skin into his mouth for longer than necessary to create a dark hickey. Not only did Johnny come away smelling like a mated Alpha, but Taeyong ended up getting a little high on Johnny’s scent in the process. He loved inhaling and only breathing the smell of Johnny, the scent tugging at his senses and making everything brand new again.

“So good, baby.” Johnny was murmuring, encouraging him as he nipped at the side of his neck, tangling a hand in the front of his sweater as his flannel shirt slipped off his shoulder.

“Y-you smell good.” Taeyong hummed, pulling the soft skin between his teeth and letting it go, then licking over the teeth marks he’d left. The room was beginning to become cloudy with their mixed scents, Sea Salt and Evergreen, a combination that had Johnny groaning low in his throat and tilting his jaw further back for Taeyong to devour his scent glands and the entirety of his neck.

“Hm, _Taeyong,_ ” Johnny moaned, taking his face in one hand as he guided him to the crook of his neck, letting Taeyong ruin him bit by bit. His head was thrown back and when Taeyong leaned back enough, he could see Johnny drooling the slightest bit, jaw dropped in bliss, moans intermittently falling from his lips. Taeyong carefully maneuvered himself from his place beside Johnny and watched as his hands dropped to his waist to gently lift him onto hips, knees bracketing him as he leant down and continued his scenting.

“Yong-ah, are you comfortable?” Johnny got out between breathy moans and Taeyong was smirking into his neck, eyes a little brighter than when Johnny had first seen him. He didn’t know his scent had that much of an effect on him, didn’t know this was possible.

“I’m perfect, just relax, okay?” Taeyong replied, looking at Johnny through thick eyelashes and flinching when he felt Johnny’s warm hands slide up under his flannel shirt, thumbs running over his nipples and sliding back to down to his waist.

“Tell me if you need to stop, I don’t mind.” Johnny mumbled and Taeyong was leaning down, capturing his lips with his own and gasping as Johnny caressed his torso over again.

“Y-yeah, I will.” He replied, pulling away to let out a stuttered breath that had Johnny smirking and running his thumbs over Taeyong’s nipples again, earning the same response, “Th-that feels good.” He added, looking away a moment as his body instinctively jolted forward, rutting his and Johnny’s hips together with force.

“Hm, that must feel really good.” Johnny commented slyly, leaning up to try and kiss Taeyong again, but he was leaning down, taking advantage of the exposed skin of his neck. His eyes flitted closed and Taeyong was lucky that Johnny knew his body as well as he did, because his hands didn’t stop- not for even a moment- as they traced the outline of his hips and ribs up to his shoulder blades and sternum and back down again.

“Fu- _hm_ \- I think I-I need more.” Taeyong mumbled, resting his forehead on Johnny’s shoulder as he failed to continue scenting him. Johnny’s hands paused on his waist and he watched as Taeyong gently moved himself to sit up on his hips without causing too much pain,

“You’re not- you’re not due to go into Heat, are you?” Johnny suddenly asked and Taeyong’s mind was spinning, head feeling light as he inhaled Johnny’s scent.

“Hm, what?” Taeyong mumbled and suddenly Johnny was sitting up, moving Taeyong’s body in his lap with feather-light touches.

“When is your Heat due, Yong-ah?” Johnny asked, voice serious now as he realised how distracted Taeyong was acting.

“Mh, I’m not sure maybe a week or so, it doesn’t matter, just-” Taeyong mumbled, eyes dripping with lust and pent-up frustration as Johnny sighed in defeat, breathing his shifting scent.

“You’re going into Heat, aren’t you.” Johnny decided, holding Taeyong’s face still and scenting him for a while. His reaction was enough to prove his point, but Johnny could also smell it, could smell his urgency and want.

“I’m not, Johnny, I’m just-” Taeyong wanted to say ‘just horny’, but Johnny was cutting him off, sliding a hand down the back of his jeans and between the curve of his ass and the fabric, Taeyong moaning and sobbing into Johnny’s neck at the sudden contact. He pulled his hand back past the waistband, fingers glistening with slick, wet and sweet as he placed the fingers in front of Taeyong’s face.

“Hm, are you still sure that you’re not going into Heat, baby?” Johnny teased, cocking an eyebrow as he sucked his fingers into his mouth, lapping Taeyong’s slick off his fingers with a groan. Taeyong had his jaw dropped, sitting in Johnny’s lap with a heated expression, “Come on then, baby, you’ll have to take the Alpha room today.” Johnny said decisively, scooping Taeyong up in his arms and letting him wrap his legs around his waist, leaving the bedroom quickly and catching Doyoung’s attention as they made their way through the living room.

“What did I say, Johnny? I said to be careful and now Taeyong’s in Heat! Oh, I can’t believe you two and- Oh my god- Johnny, look at your neck!” Doyoung yelped, shaking his head as Johnny shrugged him off, making the younger Omegas laugh. He continued down to the basement, unlocking the Alpha room door and changing out a scent neutraliser to help the Omegas out a little more than the usual ones.

“Here you are.” Johnny said quietly, laying Taeyong on the mattress as gently as possible, “Your things are in the Omega lockers, I’ll go and get them for you.” He added, kissing Taeyong’s forehead softly. He shut the door behind him, unlocking the Omega room and entering without hesitation. Jungwoo was passed out on the bed and Jaehyun was struggling to keep his eyes open from where he sat opposite.

“H-hyung?” Jaehyun croaked and Johnny smiled down at him softly, pouring him a glass of water and bringing it to his lips.

“How’s it going, Jaehyun?” He asked steadily, shooting a glance towards Jungwoo’s figure on the bed.

“T-tired.” Jaehyun got out and Johnny could see how much he’d been trying to help Jungwoo, it was mentally draining him and it must have been working, for Jungwoo was no longer rutting into the mattress or sobbing on his name.

“How does Jungwoo feel?” Johnny asked, knowing that Jaehyun could channel his energy easier at this proximity and he watched as he closed his eyes a moment, eyebrows furrowed and drawn together before relaxing.

“Tired as well.” Jaehyun said and Johnny nodded, understanding their predicament.

“You can try again tomorrow, you should both sleep now.” He responded, lifting the glass to Jaehyun’s lips again and letting him down the rest of the water. He unlocked Taeyong’s locker and grabbed his bag before ruffling Jaehyun’s hair and shutting the door behind him again. He crossed the corridor and was immediately met with Taeyong’s figure, clad in nothing but his flannel t-shirt slipping off his shoulders.

“Baby, get inside, come on.” Johnny chided, gently gripping his hips and guiding him back into the room, kicking the door shut, “I got your things, do you need anything else?” He added and Taeyong shook his head, taking the bag from Johnny and unzipping it hastily.

“Will you play with me for a while? I got a new toy and-” Taeyong began, fishing around in his bag before he smiled triumphantly, but Johnny was cutting him off.

“Taeyong, you know I’d love to, but I have to go now. Come and give me a kiss.” Johnny called, watching as Taeyong’s face fell and he dropped the bag from his hands onto the bed, dragging his feet as he walked towards Johnny.

“At least give me your sweater before you go?” Taeyong asked, reaching up to press a soft kiss to his lips, but Johnny wasn’t having any of it. He pulled Taeyong in by the waist, gently cupping his ass with one hand and his face with the other as he kissed him passionately. It was difficult to pull away, but Johnny finally gathered the last sliver of willpower he had left and pulled back, sighing as Taeyong chased after his lips.

“Here you are,” Johnny whispered, handing him his sweater and pressing a final kiss to his forehead, “I’ll see you soon, baby.” He called, winking at Taeyong and pulling the door shut behind him.

 

The following morning, Mark noticed a notification from the Omega room on the TV screen and found a voice message from Jaehyun.

“Can someone come down? Jungwoo’s back, but he’s in Heat and he keeps trying to make a move on me, I’m not quite sure- No Jungwoo! Stop it!- what to do and my Alpha keeps coming through and indulging him.” Mark smirked shaking his head going to Johnny’s room to knock on the door, in this situation he might have gone to Yuta because Johnny acted a little based on his heart rather than his head when Taeyong was in Heat, but Yuta hadn’t appeared since he’d seen Kun the night before and didn’t want to disturb them for now. He knew that Kun had taken the worst of Jaehyun’s Alpha and Yuta might not even be ready to see Jaehyun just yet.

“Hyung? Jaehyun-Hyung left a message and wants someone to go down because Jungwoo’s back in Heat.” Mark called from the door and it opened a minute later, Doyoung appearing behind him as they greeted him, following him down to the basement, “He said that his Alpha keeps indulging Jungwoo.” Mark said and Doyoung scrunched up his nose, knowing that meant Jungwoo was no longer being as innocent as they all would’ve liked.

“Oh god, all we need is them both to be in the same room so Jungwoo can live out his Heat this once. That’s all I ask, yet we have Jungwoo climbing into his lap at the slightest thing.” Johnny groaned in exasperation, unlocking the door and letting the three of them file in, Mark and Doyoung immediately turning away as their eyes fell on Jungwoo, naked between Jaehyun’s legs as he tried not to gag around the cock in his mouth.

“Oh my god, Hyung, I don’t know what to do. He keeps asking to ride me, you have to help.” Jaehyun whined in frustration, Johnny shaking his head with a smile and walking forward, tapping Jungwoo on the shoulder to jog him out of his reverie.

“Hyung! Jaehyunie is here, isn’t this great? Did you want something, Hyung?” Jungwoo asked, voice high and excited and nothing how Johnny had expected him to be in Heat, Mark and Doyoung exchanged a look.

“Yeah, it’s really great,” He replied dryly, gripping Jungwoo’s biceps and helping him to his feet, “Now, Woo-ah, I need you to do something really important for me, can you do that?” Johnny asked, voice soft and smooth the way Taeyong liked most when he was in Heat.

“Of course, Hyung, I’ll be good for you.” He replied, smiling up at him bashfully and Doyoung was raising an eyebrow, shocked at how easily Jungwoo would obey an Alpha that wasn’t his.

“Good,” Johnny said shortly, beckoning Doyoung forward to whisper something in his ear, Jungwoo watching as he nodded and left the room quickly, “Now, can you sit up on the bed for me, keep your eyes on Jaehyun, watch his expression, okay?” Johnny said smoothly and Mark was frowning at the way Jungwoo seemed to be in a trance from his voice alone. He nodded at Johnny and pulled himself up onto the bed, sitting himself in the centre and staring at Jaehyun with a soft intensity.

“Is this okay, Hyung?” Jungwoo asked, not breaking eye contact with Jaehyun as he shifted in the centre of the bed, making himself comfortable. Johnny smiled, beckoning Doyoung in as he nodded,

“Very good, Jungwoo,” He spoke and Doyoung held the cuffs quietly behind his back, not that Jungwoo would think twice about it if he did hear them, “Now, can you close your eyes and lay back, just focusing on my voice, okay?” Johnny whispered and Jungwoo did as he was told, sinking down in the sheets and closing his eyes. Somewhere in the back of his mind he heard the words ‘Just his ankles’, but Johnny had told him to focus on his voice and so he pushed it away without further thought. Doyoung walked forward, lacing the chains around the posts at the foot of the bed, curling the cuffs around Jungwoo’s ankles and locking them in place, Mark hushing Jaehyun’s erratic breathing and Johnny going to Jungwoo’s locker, finding his bag of toys and emptying them out within arms reach of himself. It was the best that they could do, Johnny knew how difficult it’d be if they’d tied Jungwoo’s arms as well, Jaehyun’s Alpha probably would have broken Johnny’s nose as well, but this was what they had to work with. For Jaehyun’s bond to be settled he needed to be with Jungwoo, no matter what and that included being there in his first Heat since the bond had started. The catch was that Jungwoo couldn’t touch Jaehyun because he’d likely awaken his Alpha and, in short, Jungwoo would end up either being raped or having consensual sex and ending up pregnant and Johnny honestly wasn’t too keen on a band-baby just yet.

“Okay, Jungwoo, count to ten for me and then you can open your eyes, okay?” Johnny said softly and Jungwoo hummed his agreement, beginning to count the numbers out loud, unaware of how Mark, Doyoung and Johnny were now exiting the Omega room, wishing Jaehyun luck and locking the door behind them.

 

Haechan was sitting in Mark’s lap, which wasn’t anything new, but Chenle could smell it. Lucas and the younger kids were all gathered in the living room, an Avengers rerun was playing on the TV, one they’d watched maybe fifteen times already, but comfortable nonetheless. Chenle was sat with Jisung and Renjun, Lucas’ head in his lap as the night drew on, but there was something wrong and Chenle was the first to pick up on it.

“Mark-Hyung, can you come and help me make drinks?” Chenle finally decided, getting restless and uncomfortable as the ads began to play. Mark turned to him with a sigh, Haechan groaning as he moved and tried to get comfortable again.

“Can’t you just take Lucas? I’m comfortable.” Mark tried, but Chenle was using his best puppy-dog eyes and Renjun was watching on in amusement.

“Please, Hyung?” He tried again and Mark really was a weak man. Kissing Haechan’s head and fussing over him for another minute, he followed Chenle into the kitchen, pulling himself onto a barstool, “You smell different.” Chenle added, reaching for a glass from the top shelf.

“No I don’t, It’s just because I’ve been spending a lot of time around Haechan and he’s still a little shaken up from everything. I-I let him scent me sometimes, okay?” Mark said quietly, his voice dropping as he avoided Chenle’s gaze in embarrassment.

“Yes, yes, we already knew that, but that’s not what I’m talking about.” Chenle replied, shaking his head in exasperation, “I think you’re going into Rut.” He said decisively and Mark was back on his feet again, shaking his head and walking towards the calendar.

“No, there’s no way. I’m not due for another month, Chenle, it must just be because Haechan’s scenting me more often. I know our cycles are all messed up, but there’s no way mine would come a month early, that’d be mad.” Mark retorted, flicking through the calendar and shaking his head. Yes- he was right- green was expected Ruts and purple was actual Ruts, there was no way he’d be this early.

“Okay, Hyung. I trust your judgement, so I’ll drop it, but just be careful.” Chenle said quietly, smiling softly and leaving the kitchen.

 

Chenle was right. Mark was going into Rut and both rooms were still occupied.

“What do we do?” Doyoung asked, grabbing Haechan into his side as they stood outside Mark’s bedroom door.

“This has never happened, our cycles are normally pretty well spread.” Ten said quietly and Lucas was nodding along, letting Chenle loop an arm around his waist. The scent was making everyone a little clingy.

“Well, what do we do?” Chenle asked, looking up at Johnny as he appeared from Mark’s room, pulling the door shut before Haechan could smell him too strongly.

“I don’t know, but we can’t have the Omegas going into Heat any sooner, they’ll just offer themselves up to him. The upstairs rooms aren’t exactly designed to keep in scents.” Johnny explained, crossing his arms over his chest as he thought it over.

“We can’t wait for a room to free up, Mark’s Alpha is strong and if he gets out of here he’ll grab any Omega in his wake.” Doyoung commented, pointing to the door behind him and pulling Haechan in closer as he shivered at the words.

“Why not bring Taeyong up then? Him and Johnny are practically mated and if any of the Alphas dare lay a finger on him, he’s strong enough to fight them off.” Lucas inputted and Chenle nodded, it wasn’t a bad idea. Doyoung thought it through for a moment and Johnny rested a fist under his chin in thought,

“It’s not a _terrible_ idea.” Doyoung added and Renjun agreed, knowing there weren't too many other options. Johnny finally breathed and nodded,

“Okay, fine. Ten and Doyoung can bring Mark down and I’ll go and sort Taeyong out, are you both okay to do the switch over?” Johnny asked, running a hand over his face. This was going to be difficult. Doyoung nodded, letting Haechan fall into Renjun’s arms,

“Shall I ask Yuta to help you with Taeyong?” Ten asked, moving aside for Lucas and Renjun to guide Chenle and Haechan back down the hallway.

“No, leave him with Kun for now. He’s still a little shaken up.” Johnny explained and he nodded in understanding, “Can we get the younger ones out the apartment for a bit? The scents will be pretty strong and Taeyong will also kill me if he knows that anyone else saw him in Heat.” Johnny added and Doyoung smirked, nodding as he went to tell the others the arrangement, handing Taeil his debit card to pay for food with it.

 

Within twenty minutes, they’d managed to usher the Omegas and Betas out of the house, leaving Yuta and Kun in their room together, undisturbed.

“Doyoung, can you get the maid to change the sheets as soon as I get Taeyong out? You two can both take Mark down as soon as she’s done, I’ll change the scent neutraliser out.” Johnny explained, Doyoung and Ten nodding before he left them both to get Taeyong. He hated to think about how difficult this would be. Unlocking Taeyong’s door, he crept in, hoping not to startle him too much,

“Taeyongie?” Johnny called, clicking the door shut behind him and advancing into the room, “Baby, are you up?” He spoke again, turning the corner to find Taeyong lying on his side, eyes shut tightly as he thrust into a tight fist, his other hand pressed into a fist against his mouth.

“H-hm,” He moaned, eyes slowly fluttering open and catching Johnny in his line of vision, “J-Johnny? What are you- _Ahh-_ ” He cut himself off as another wave of his Heat hit him and Johnny rushed forward on instinct, stroking the hair back from his face.

“Mark went into Rut, so I’m afraid you’ll have to have your Heat upstairs.” Johnny explained, watching Taeyong’s eyes close momentarily as he tried to contain his moans and focus on their conversation, “Can you move?” He added, reaching a hand under Taeyong’s head, pulling the thin sheet over him to cover his naked body. He hummed in response, letting go of the grip on his cock and blinking slowly up at Johnny,

“Whe-where will I have my Heat?” He asked, reaching up for Johnny to pull him into his arms, stashing his things back in his bag to sling over his shoulder.

“You’ll have to have it in my bedroom. I’ll bring a scent neutraliser up and-” Johnny began to explain, but Taeyong was frowning, covering his mouth with his small hands.

“N-no, no neutralisers, I want your scent.” Taeyong begged, tracing his fingers over Johnny’s lips now. He smiled down at him, taking the neutraliser from the shelf,

“We’ll see,” He winked, hoisting Taeyong’s body back up into his arms and kissing his forehead, “Alright, try to concentrate on something else for a while because your scent is going to be strong for Mark when we walk past his room.” Johnny added, letting the Alpha’s door shut behind him and ascending the stairs.

“C-can I scent you again?” Taeyong asked, tentatively running an index finger down Johnny’s jugular, not looking away from his scent glands. Johnny sighed quietly, knowing it would distract Taeyong from Mark’s scent, but not knowing whether it’d be any good for Mark’s Alpha if he were to smell it.

“In a minute, just stay focused for now. Think about that time we went to the river in Spring and you got excited about those cherry blossom trees. You loved them so much.” Johnny smiled, recalling the memory and hoping it’d be enough to distract Taeyong from his Heat for a moment. That’s all he needed, just one moment in which they walked past Mark’s door and then he could carry on doing whatever he wanted to get himself through the week.

“Mh, they were so pretty. You were so much happier back then.” Taeyong commented absentmindedly and Johnny frowned, trying to keep up the conversation as they neared Mark’s bedroom door, Doyoung and Ten coming into view.

“What do you mean? I’m happy now, aren’t I?” He questioned, eyes flicking to the two ahead of him as Doyoung moved to call the maid. Taeyong shifted in his arms, sensing a change in smell and Ten tried to give off a calming scent to cover Mark’s.

“Yes, b-but you’re different.” Taeyong said quietly, knowing exactly what Ten was doing and trying to keep his mind occupied, “You’re busier now, preoccupied with other things.” He tried to explain and Johnny nodded his agreement. He hated that Taeyong was right about this. He wanted to be able to give Taeyong all his time, to devote himself to him and have every moment consumed with his touch, but he knew he couldn’t. Taeyong knew that as well, after all, that was the reason in which they hadn’t mated yet.

“You’re busier too, but you still make time for me.” Johnny said quietly, guilt tinging his voice as he thought about it. Taeyong snorted, looking up as they entered Johnny’s room,

“I hardly think that the occasional blowjob I give you in the practice room can be classed as ‘making time for you’.” Taeyong said with a giggle and Johnny smirked, shaking his head and laying him down on the clean sheets.

“Yes well, it’s better than no blowjob at all, right?” Johnny smiled, leaning over him and placing his bag beside the bed- they’d made it and Taeyong’s Heat had even subsided enough for him to hold a conversation that wasn’t solely him begging to be fucked.

“I guess you’re right.” He replied, reaching up to cradle Johnny’s face as he perched at the edge of the bed, “I’m going to say something and I want you to know that this isn’t my Heat talking- I really mean it.” He paused and Johnny nodded, waiting for him to continue, “I really wish we were mated.”

“I know, baby, but it’s just not the right-” Johnny began, but Taeyong was smiling sadly, cutting him off.

“Not the right time, I know.” He breathed slowly, eyes flitting to the mattress, “I just don’t like the idea of someone else taking you from me.” He continued, cheeks painted pale pink as he fiddled with the cuff of Johnny’s sweater.

“I’m not going anywhere, Taeyongie.” Johnny replied, running a thumb over his eyebrow, down his face and resting at his chin, “I promise.”

“Yes, but you can’t promise that when you’re in Rut. The same way that I can’t promise it when I’m in Heat.” Taeyong replied turning his face into Johnny’s touch.

“Well, maybe we should have this conversation again once you’re through with your Heat, hm?” Johnny asked softly and Taeyong smiled up at him bashfully. He turned his head to press a kiss to Johnny’s knuckles,

“Yeah, I’d really like that.” He replied, leaning up to meet Johnny halfway in a heated kiss. That was enough to bring his Heat back in waves.

 

Kun was fine. He really was fine, but Yuta didn’t believe a word of it and it was starting to get a little _too_ comfortable. He liked this, liked how domestic Yuta was when it came down to his needs and he couldn’t help imagining what it might be like if they were living together- just the two of them. It wasn’t like he couldn’t do all these things for himself and- as Yuta had clarified months ago- this was just a fling, nothing more intimate, but Kun was starting to doubt his words. It was Saturday night when Kun decided he needed to get out of bed, leave these four walls before he got stir crazy. Yuta had been doing everything for him, he meant _everything_ , feeding him, bathing him, scenting him and sleeping with him, only leaving his side when Kun needed something to eat or drink and Kun hated how much he enjoyed it. He knew this was just Yuta’s personality, but somewhere in the back of his mind it felt like more.

“Yuta? Can I help make dinner with you?” Kun said decisively, cocking his head in question as Yuta appeared from the ensuite bathroom after washing Kun’s hair. Yes, _he was even washing Kun’s hair._

“I’ll think about it.” Yuta said smugly, smiling down at him as he brought the hairdryer into the bedroom, sitting Kun on the floor before making himself comfortable on the bed behind him.

“Come on, Yu, I’m feeling a lot better. Please?” Kun asked, turning around to meet Yuta’s gaze as he turned the hairdryer on.

“Well, how much does your chest hurt on a scale from 1 to 10?” Yuta quizzed, running his hands through Kun’s damp hair as he tried to style it how he liked. Kun thought a moment, tensing his stomach muscles to see if it hurt- _hm, maybe a 5?_

“About 3, it’s only a few broken ribs and besides, my abdomen doesn’t hurt so much anymore.” Kun lied, stuffing his fists into the pocket of his hoodie.

“Okay, maybe for a little while, but as soon as you get tired, I’m bringing you straight back here.” Yuta said firmly, switching the temperature on the hairdryer as he saw Kun shiver, “No arguing, okay?” He added, tilting Kun’s chin back to meet his gaze, face upside down and distorted.

“Thanks, Yuta!” He smiled, eyes creasing as he reached up to cup Yuta’s face above him, making him giggle softly.

 

After almost twenty minutes of Yuta trying to talk him out of leaving their bedroom, he finally gave in, holding Kun’s waist protectively as they made their way to the kitchen.

“The minute you get tired, Kunnie, I mean it.” Yuta said for the millionth time and Kun nodded with a smirk, searching through the fridge in haste.

“It’s nice- you being like this.” Kun responded absentmindedly, grabbing bell peppers and spring onions to pass to Yuta. He frowned,

“Being like what?” He questioned, wondering if maybe there was a language barrier there that explained more of what Kun was trying to say.

“I don’t know. Being domestic, taking care of me. It’s nice.” Kun tried explaining, not meeting his eye as he passed him eggs and milk. Yuta stopped him, grabbing his wrist before he could turn back to the fridge.

“Only because I care about you,” Yuta said, an arm sliding around his waist a he looked at him intently. And there it was, the words that Kun began playing over and over again in his mind ‘only because I care about you’, probably the very same words he’d used on Haechan and Sicheng and all the other 14 members. He tried his best not to let his smile falter and for a moment he imagined this were all a bad dream and that he’d wake up in Yuta’s arms like every other morning, only this time he’d kiss him and tell him he loved him and that would be enough. But of course it went like this, Kun was fooling himself for thinking it might go any other way.

“Th-that’s cute.” Kun tried to smile, turning back around and cursing himself for stuttering. He should’ve done as Yuta had said, he should have stayed in his room and lived out the fantasy for another day or two, maybe they would have managed to avoid this conversation altogether if he had.

“What’s the matter?” Yuta asked, leaning on the counter, but not trying to make Kun look at him now and for that, he was grateful.

“Nothing, I just got lost in my thoughts.” Kun replied and, at the very least, that wasn’t a lie. He smiled at Yuta, but he’d known him too long to know when he was faking it. He stepped forward, eyebrows drawing together as he pushed Kun against the opposite counter, trapping him between his hips and the kitchen surface.

“I know that you’re lying. I knew that you were lying when you said you were at a number 3 pain level, so what are you keeping from me?” Yuta asked, concern crossing his expression as he reached for Kun’s face, hand falling short and sliding onto his bicep instead.

“It’s nothing, really, I’ve just had a lot going on recently.” Kun smiled, but Yuta was not letting up and Kun knew he couldn’t get out of this. _When had Yuta begun to know him so well?_

“Kun, tell me what’s going on.” Yuta tried again, this time looking at him with a little hysteria swimming in his eyes. He thought the worst and Kun could almost read his mind, _he thinks Jaehyun did something to me_.

“Honestly, it’s nothing, Yuta. I’m hungry, come on.” He tried once more, trying to indirectly answer Yuta’s telepathic question of concern. He sighed, letting Kun’s body go and watching as he hesitated a moment as if he’d changed his mind and had decided he did want to tell Yuta, but he moved away quickly.

“I’m here whenever you feel like telling me, Kunnie.” He added, placing his hands on his hips and pressing a soft kiss to his neck before crossing the kitchen.

But that was just it, Kun couldn’t tell him.

 

By the time they’d finished making dinner, the other kids had arrived home, gently hugging Kun as Yuta shot them all threatening looks across the table.

“Hyung, do you feel better? We missed you.” Renjun asked in Mandarin, ignoring the look he was receiving from Yuta. Kun smiled up at him, feeding him a piece of pork as he nodded, not even noticing Yuta’s death glares towards the others.

“A lot better, Renjun. Are the younger ones okay now?” He asked in response, shuffling along the counter to let him pull a chair up next to him.

“They’re okay, a lot better than the first day. Did you hear that Taeyong had to cancel all their schedules the day after? It was lucky he did, they were pretty shaken up if I’m honest.” Renjun explained, not once thinking of changing back to Korean so Yuta could join the conversation.

“Really? It’s lucky they’re doing better…” Kun continued and somewhere around that sentence Yuta zoned out, letting the two of them chatter on as he began clearing the dishes, not even asking whether Kun was finished. He left quickly afterwards, stealing away to their bedroom without a word.

 

Kun joined him about an hour later, having caught up with the other members and finally coming back to get some rest.

“Are you okay? You left quickly.” Kun stated, Yuta’s back turned on him as he sat down beside him on the bed. He was surprised to see Yuta moving so quickly, getting up the moment Kun had sat down.

“I’m fine.” He said bluntly and Kun frowned, knowing it had something to do with him, but not quite being able to place it.

“What’s up? Did I do something wrong?” He questioned, but Yuta was walking towards his drawers, pulling out a clean night-sweater before turning back to Kun.

“No, it’s fine. I’m going to sleep in Taeil’s room tonight, okay?” He responded quickly, making for the door, but Kun was quick on his feet, cringing at the shot of pain as he tried to stop Yuta.

“Wait, Yuta, wait.” He gasped, trying to control the expression on his face as he reached him at the door, “Please talk to me.” He tried and Yuta was spinning around, looking at him with a concerned frown before pushing him back to bed, letting the backs of his thighs hit the mattress before sitting him down.

“Kun, it doesn’t matter, okay? Just get some rest, you’ll only end up hurting yourse-” Yuta began lecturing, voice void of any sympathy or emotion, in fact.

“No, Yuta, tell me why you’re acting like this? You’re scaring me.” Kun replied firmly, voice raising a little and Yuta stumbled back, eyes softer now.

“Kun- I-” He stopped himself, inhaling deeply as if he were already tired of the conversation, “I’m just tired. I need to sleep and-”

“Yuta, tell me the truth!” Kun exclaimed, voice raising again and he knew he was being a hypocrite, he really did know, but he couldn’t just let Yuta leave him now.

“Fine! Fine, I’ll tell you the truth, Kun!” He yelled back and Kun tried his best not to cower, “The truth is that I have done everything for you. I fed you and bathed you and cared for you- god, Kun- I was so worried about you and yet you can’t even admit to your feelings. I can read you like a book, Kun, but you can’t even decipher a page of me- that’s why I’m upset!” He was seething now, teeth bared as his breath came ragged and short and Kun was pulling himself to his feet now, not letting his Omega fears get the better of him.

“Really? That’s it? You think I asked you to do that? You think I asked for you to feed me and bathe me?” Kun replied, suddenly pausing to backtrack, because he was right, he did want him to do those things. He stuttered on a breath, eyes brimming as he looked at the empty space between them, lowering his voice back to speaking level, “You think it’s easy for me to admit my feelings when it was you who told me this was just a fling in the first place?” And Yuta was crying now, not bothering to wipe his tears as he stared down at Kun.

“It’s not like that anymore, Kun, and you know it.” He whispered shakily and Kun wanted to reach for him, to hug him and tell him he was sorry that he didn’t tell him sooner, but he wouldn’t, not yet at least.

“Yuta, you can’t keep playing me like this. Do you want _me_ or do you want to make me happy?” Kun asked, terrified to know the answer, because as much as he knew Yuta loved him, he didn’t think it extended as far as intimacy.

“I want both.” He said quietly, staring into Kun’s eyes as tears streaked his face and for once in his life he was sure he’d made the right decision.

“Yuta, don’t lie to m-” Kun began, but Yuta was surging forward, gripping his face in both hands and kissing him hard, trailing his tongue over Kun’s bottom lip in desperation.

“Kun, I said I want both.” He whispered once they finally pulled apart and this time Kun knew he was telling the truth, because Yuta had gotten him all wrong- Kun, could in fact, read him like a twelve part novel.


	3. Chapter 3

It felt like Jungwoo and Jaehyun had been gone for an eternity and in some ways they had. Doyoung and Ten had been down alternating days to check on them and feed them both, but Jungwoo was still in Heat and Johnny had decided that something was wrong. With Taeyong also currently in Heat, his mind was a little scrambled and Taeil had started taking over their duties, re-organising schedules and trying to sort out the Heat and Rut calendars. Sicheng had found him in the kitchen one night, half asleep as he tried to rearrange a press meeting in Japan, management asking for Johnny or Taeyong, but Taeil not being able to provide. Lucas had noticed it too. One morning, after he’d left Jisung’s bed, he found Taeil asleep on the living room couch, his phone still on a call with his mother, both of them clearly falling asleep without having time to hang up. He disconnected their call, pulling a blanket over Taeil and trying to help estimate the Alpha and Omegas cycles.

It was a Wednesday when Taeyong was finally out of Heat, Johnny had hardly left his side all week and as soon as he appeared in the kitchen that Wednesday, Renjun was on him like a virus. 

“Hyung, they're still not done- Jungwoo and Jaehyun Hyung. Doyoung-Hyung said Jungwoo was in a bad state. I think we need to call someone.” He rushed out, not even letting Johnny reach the coffee machine. He breathed slowly, taking in Renjun’s words as he blinked slowly, groaning as he looked at the number of days Jungwoo had been in Heat for. 

“Mh, you’re right. I’ll give the clinic a call later today, thanks, Renjun.” He said quickly, desperately wanting to get back to Taeyong. He was needy after Heats, clinging to Johnny and scenting him every 20 minutes. Johnny couldn’t bring himself to complain, though, he really did love it. Pouring coffee into a mug, he trudged back to his bedroom, shutting the door behind him as his eyes fell on Taeyong who was sitting up in bed now. 

“How are you feeling?” Johnny questioned, sliding under the covers and bringing him into his arms, kissing the crown of his head. Taeyong hummed, trying to reach for Johnny's mug of coffee, only to have his hand swatted away, “You know the rules- no caffeine right after Heats.” Johnny chided, smirking at Taeyong’s pout. 

“The rules are also ‘No alcohol after Ruts’ but that never stopped you, Johnny.” Taeyong shot back, sticking out his bottom lip and almost making Johnny give in. Almost. They settled into a comfortable silence for a while until Johnny decided to explain their predicament with Jungwoo and Jaehyun, Taeyong groaning in exasperation, looking as if he might cry, which was highly possible because he always was sensitive in the aftermath. 

“I can call the clinic, if you want? That doesn’t take me having to leave my bed and that sounds just about right for me today.” Taeyong stated and Johnny was smiling at him. He knew he shouldn’t bringing it up just yet, but Taeyong’s Heat had finished and Johnny couldn’t stop himself. 

“Can I ask something?” He asked and Taeyong was nodding for him to go ahead, “Did you really mean what you said the other day about mating?” And Taeyong was choking on air for a moment. 

“What? W-when I was in Heat?” He asked and Johnny's heart sank because it must have just been something he’d said in the moment if this was how he reacted. 

“Don’t worry, we can talk about it another time.” Johnny tried, Taeyong surprising him as he frantically shook his head. 

“No, no I didn’t mean it to come out like that, I just- just wasn’t expecting you to bring it up so soon, or so casually, for that matter.” He tried to explain, but Johnny was smiling down at him sadly and Taeyong was starting to panic. 

“No, really, you don’t have to explain yourself. It’s a big thing and you’re right- I shouldn’t have bought it up so casually, that was unfair of me.” He tried to explain, downing the last of his coffee and moving to the ensuite to run a bath for Taeyong.

“Johnny, wait,” He tried again, watching as he paused at the bathroom door, “Let’s talk about this now.” And even if his heart felt like it might beat right out of his chest, he knew that this was what he wanted. Johnny was what he wanted. It’d been so long since they’d last had this conversation and Taeyong knew now that he was ready, maybe more so than Johnny. He came back to sit at the end of their bed, facing Taeyong with a soft expression,

“Baby, this is a big thing and I don’t want you to just be doing this because of me. I want you to want this the same amount that I do.” Johnny tried to explain, sighing for a moment and blindly reaching for Taeyong’s hand, “It’s not going to be easy, you know.” Taeyong slipped his hand into Johnny’s, reaching for his face with his free hand and staring up at him with those eyes that Johnny could never say no to.

“I know, but I’m ready and I want this. Maybe more than you want it. People can say what they want, but at the end of the day, the band knows how much we want to be together and we know how much we want to be together, so why care about everything else?” Taeyong responded, watching in slight dismay as Johnny seized up at his words.  _ What had he said wrong? _

“Yes, but this won’t only take a toll on us, it will affect the whole group and maybe even our publici-” Johnny began, only to be interrupted.

“Johnny, do you love me?” Taeyong asked quietly and in the back of his mind he swore he heard his voice shake, but he was too caught up in the expression on Johnny’s face to notice.

“Of course, Taeyong, you know that-” He began, but Taeyong was cutting in again.

“Then, please, just put me first. Just this once, let me be more important to you than our reputation.” His voice had dropped to a whisper and Johnny could see his eyes brimming, it was breaking his heart, this wasn’t how this conversation was supposed to go.

“I’ll always put you before our reputation, Taeyong, I’m just trying to think about it from the other’s perspective.” He tried explaining, knowing Taeyong had begun thinking he’d lost this fight. There was silence for a while, Taeyong’s hand growing clammy in Johnny’s grip,

“If you don’t feel ready for this yet, then don’t force yourself.” Taeyong whispered and those words cut too deep for Johnny not to take to heart. He watched as Taeyong removed his hand from his own, making his way to the bathroom on wobbly legs and locking the door behind him.

 

Later that day, Doyoung appeared in Taeyong’s room, sliding into bed beside him and propping his head up on his hand.

“What is it?” He asked, voice drawn out in concern as he studied Taeyong’s expression. He was going to cry.

“I- I-” Taeyong stuttered out and, just as Doyoung predicted, broke into tears, his body convulsing with sobs as he choked back wave after wave of emotion. Doyoung pulled him into his arms, stroking his shoulders rhythmically and trying his best to give Taeyong time to calm down, but he was worried, he needed to know what was wrong.

“You’re okay, it’s okay.” He whispered into his hair, letting his scent run around the room to try and calm Taeyong, but it only seemed to make him more distressed as he lost the smell of Johnny’s, “Just breathe-”

“The clinic said th-that Jaehyun and Jungwoo have to mate.” Taeyong cut in, shocking Doyoung for a moment. That wasn’t something to be this distressed about, surely. He leant back, wiping Taeyong’s tears with his thumbs and frowning at him.

“That’s okay, we’ll make it work. It’s not the end of the-” Doyoung began, but Taeyong was hiccuping and talking over him again, not being able to get his words out fast enough.

“And Johnny doesn’t want me.” He croaked and Doyoung froze. This couldn’t be true, there was no way. He recalled how Johnny had left the house that morning, telling them he had some work to do before grabbing his car keys and slamming the front door. It was rare for Johnny to leave Taeyong’s side so quickly after he’d finished Heat, but Doyoung hadn’t dwelled on it, expecting Taeyong needed something they didn’t have at hand and that Johnny might be going out to get it for him.

“Taeyong, what do you mean? Tell me what’s going on.” He said firmly, anger creeping up his spine for a moment. Taeyong sniffed, gripping at Doyoung’s sweater and curling back into his chest again.

“He doesn’t want to mate with me and now Jaehyun and Jungwoo are mating before us and it feels horrible.” Taeyong explained, “I’m jealous, I guess. I’ve been with Johnny for this long- since before we debuted- and they get the thing I want most. I just want Johnny to promise me this, promise me forever, and he won’t.” Doyoung was seething now, thinking of how Johnny had caused this, how Johnny had caused this heartbreak and distress. He contained a growl,

“He d-doesn’t want to mate?” Doyoung repeated, playing the words over and over again in his mind. For as long as he could remember, Johnny had been entirely whipped for Taeyong, so, why lead him on this far and then tell him he didn’t want to mate him? Taeyong must have left some parts of the argument out, because this wasn’t all adding up, but Doyoung’s Alpha was getting wild, protective of the heartbroken Omega, straight out of Heat and vulnerable in every way. 

“He just left afterwards. I don’t know where he is and I’m scared.” Taeyong added and Doyoung was pulling away from him, storming out the bedroom door to get Yuta or Ten or any other Alpha who could help hunt Johnny down. Taeyong shivered at the loss of contact and tried not to cry anymore, but the more he thought about Johnny, the more tears that came.

 

Lucas gathered Taeyong in his arms, trying to distract him from the distorted yelling outside his door. Chenle had appeared at his bedside too, bringing a hot meal to him and helping him chow it down.

“Hey, did I tell you that the Dreamies are teaching me their choreography?” Lucas tried, cringing as he heard the door slam and the angered voices fading out. Chenle perked up, scooping rice onto a spoon and placing a slice of lotus root on top,

“Yeah, it’s lucky he’s cute otherwise it’d be an absolute disaster.” He teased, giggling softly as he brought the spoon to Taeyong’s lips. Jeno appeared at the door and for a moment Lucas froze up, but was quick to drag a smile onto his face and leave Taeyong’s bedside, pulling the bedroom door shut behind him.

“They’ve found him. I don’t really know what’s going on, but they’re trying to talk some sense into him before they bring him back here.” Jeno explained, crossing his arms over his chest and looking smaller for a moment. Jaemin ran down the corridor towards them both, absentmindedly reaching for Jeno’s hand,

“They’re coming back in about ten minutes and Yuta-Hyung wants us all out of the house.” He added and Lucas was frowning, momentarily panicking before nodding and calling for Sicheng and Kun. They appeared a moment later, concern filling their eyes as Lucas told them to take the younger kids to the nearest food place, only to come back when Taeil was sent to collect them. They nodded and Lucas called Chenle away from Taeyong’s side to join the others, ushering them away as he received a call from Ten. He answered it, pulling Taeyong’s door shut again.

“We’re bringing him back now, make sure the kids are gone. He’s- he’s a little out of himself.” Ten tried to explain, but Lucas could hear scrambling and muttered curses in the background and it was clear that Johnny might be more than just ‘a little out of himself’. Lucas agreed and minutes after the others had left, Taeil was unlocking the door, dragging Johnny into the apartment with force. Taeyong could already smell him.

“I think his Rut’s coming on, but he needs to sort this out first.” Yuta explained, dragging him down the corridor and sitting him down on the bed beside Taeyong.

“T-Taeyong?” Johnny questioned, observing his bloodshot eyes and downcast expression. His voice was softer now and Doyoung released his grip on him, letting him approach Taeyong slowly, “A-are you crying?” He asked and Taeyong turned his face away, messily wiping his eyes with the back of his hand. 

“N-no, Johnny, I’m fi-fine.” He tried and Johnny could almost laugh because he was so far from fine that it hurt. He reached Taeyong’s side and Doyoung stopped Ten from advancing to try and pull him away from Taeyong.

“Is this about earlier or-” Johnny asked, but Taeyong was turning to face him, eyes glistening and laced with hurt.

“Jungwoo and Jaehyun have to mate.” He said quickly and Johnny was momentarily taken aback, “No, they  _ get _ to mate and they don’t even enjoy each others company all that much. B-but you still don’t want me.” He finished quietly, blinking slowly as a fresh batch of tears ran down his face and this time it was Yuta who tried to surge forward, but Doyoung was on him again, pushing him back and telling him to wait.

“That’s not true, Yong-ah, you know that’s not true. I want you with every piece of me, but how can I have that when I have sixteen other people to protect?” Johnny tried to explain and Taeyong cried a little harder, small body wracking with the extortion of it.

“That’s just it. I don’t mean anything more to you than the other sixteen so why-” Taeyong began, but Johnny was growling, pushing Taeyong back against the sheets and pinning him there, this time Doyoung nodded for them to advance, only pausing when Johnny spoke.

“‘Don’t mean anything more’? Are you joking? I’m in love with you, Taeyong! How can you not see that? Every part of me tells me I have to make you mine, but you taught me self-control and I’m practicing it for your sake, for the groups sake. I’m losing my mind here, trying to fight the part of me that is desperate to mark you and mate you and have you as my own, but somewhere in the back of my mind I know I have to restrain myself.” Johnny growled out and Doyoung raised his hand for the others to stay put, Taeyong wasn’t in pain and he’d stopped crying now.

“Why? Why do you have to restrain yourself? We act like we’re mated, the others think it too, so why don’t you just do it?” Taeyong provoked and that was the moment that the logical part of Johnny’s being knew that he was right. Why  _ didn’t _ he just do it? Ten and Doyoung stepped back, Yuta beckoning them all to the door before Johnny literally jumped his bones right in front of them. 

“It’s going to reek if we let them mate in there, Hyung.” Ten said, looking up at Taeil in desperation, “The Omegas can’t handle that, I don’t even know whether I can.” He added, turning to Yuta and Doyoung who were nodding in agreement. Taeil sighed,

“Well, how long has Mark got left?” He asked, Lucas counting on his fingers before nodding conclusively.

“Two days if we’re lucky, four if we’re not.” He spoke and Doyoung was sighing.

“He’s going to have to come upstairs, we don’t have any other choice. The Omegas would be better with just an Alpha’s Rut than the scent of mating, it’ll be too much.” Yuta spoke and the others nodded, ready for the change over that’d occurred not long before with Taeyong.

Lucas was allocated to bring Taeyong down, scooping him up in his arms and following Ten, Doyoung and Yuta who were practically dragging Johnny downstairs. Taeil was keeping guard of Mark, standing outside his bedroom where he’d been taken moments before to live out his Rut for the remaining days.

“Lucas? Is-is he going into Rut?” Taeyong asked, already knowing the answer to the question from the very scent wafting around him.

“Yes, Hyung, I’m afraid so.” Lucas explained, taking pity on Taeyong. He’d just finished his Heat, exhausted and sore and now Johnny was going to do it all over again for him. If they had have pushed it off another four months, their cycles would have synced and it would’ve been easier on Taeyong, but it looked like neither of them could wait four months. They could barely even wait four minutes. 

“So, he’s going to mate me?” Taeyong asked, just for clarification and Lucas was nodding, following the others into the Alpha room.

“If that’s what you want, then yes, he is going to mate you.” Lucas said slowly, walking ahead to lay Taeyong on the king-sized bed that’d recently been cleaned again. 

“That’s what I want.” Taeyong replied decisively and Lucas stared at him a moment longer.

“Are you scared?” He asked quietly and Taeyong looked away for a moment.

“Maybe a little.” He responded and Lucas was pulling him into an embrace, gripping his face in his hands.

“Don’t be. He’ll be worth it all.” Lucas said softly, pulling back and letting Taeyong lay back down against the mattress with a long exhale through his teeth. Yuta and Doyoung loosened their grip, slowly letting Johnny go and Taeyong nodded reassuringly, telling them he’d be fine before Johnny crawled over his torso. They left quickly, Doyoung crossing the corridor to unlock the Omega room, telling the others to wait outside whilst he unchained Jaehyun and Jungwoo. He shut the door behind him, noticing that Jaehyun was now living out a self-induced Rut that must have been brought on by Jungwoo in Heat for an extended period of time.

“You two are going to mate.” Doyoung said quickly, trying to avoid looking at the way Jungwoo was pushing  _ something _ into himself, panting and groaning. He swallowed dryly, unlocking the restraints behind Jaehyun and watching him stand stiffly, shaking the ache out of his arms and legs before rushing to Jungwoo’s side. Doyoung followed, eyes staying trained on the key in his hands as he uncuffed Jungwoo’s feet from the end of the bed, leaving the room in haste and locking the door behind him.

“I’ve seen too much, I need to live a life of celibacy to make up for this,  _ jesus christ _ .” Doyoung commented, following the others up the stairs to take over from Taeil’s post outside Mark’s door, doing his best to cover his scent before the kids came back.

“We’re done. We did it.” Ten spoke with finality, sighing in relief as he collapsed on the couch beside Yuta. 

 

Johnny  _ was _ going into Rut, Taeyong thought to himself, pulling his sleeves over his hands. They’d forgotten the scent neutraliser and Taeyong was losing his breath like this- he never knew Johnny could smell like this.

“J-Johnny?” He whispered, propping himself up on his elbows to study Johnny’s expression. He was visibly trying to fight off his Alpha and Taeyong had last seen him like this around when they’d first met, it hurt to see him like this now, “Hey, it’s okay, I’m here.” He whispered, suddenly deciding to kneel up to reach for Johnny, placing his hands on his shoulders and trying to get him to meet his gaze.

“T-Taeyoung-ah, I d-don’t want to hurt you.” He stuttered out, turning his head to the side and squeezing his eyes shut as if he were experiencing pain. He probably was, it wasn’t easy to fight off Alpha instincts.

“I know, I know and you won’t, baby. I trust you and we both want this, right?” Taeyong tried again, cupping his jaw now and staring at him with those puppy-dog eyes.

“Of course I want this. I can’t believe I ever made you think I didn’t.” He replied, finally opening his eyes and looking down at Taeyong from his place beside him. His hand was rough as he ran it down his face, trying to compose himself a little more, “I’m sorry, Taeyong, about earlier, I’m really sorry.” He mumbled and Taeyong was surging forward, kissing his neck softly and holding him close.

“Don’t apologise, you really don’t have to.” Taeyong whispered against his skin, feeling Johnny shiver in response to the warm breath that fanned across his neck, “Just tell me now, will you mate me?” He asked, finality in his voice because he needed to hear it for himself. He needed to know that Johnny wanted this and didn’t just feel pressured, obliged.

“Yes,” He paused, eyes going dark a moment with his Alpha, “Yes, I’ll mate you, yes.” And Taeyong had never been so relieved in his life. He leant upwards, capturing Johnny’s bottom lip between his own and sucking slowly, revelling in the moan that was torn from his lips. Johnny was pushing Taeyong down onto the bed, grabbing at his hair and taking control of the kiss as he propped himself up over Taeyong’s body, eyes scanning over his  _ tiny _ waist, desperate to devour him.

“J-Johnny, baby, your Rut won’t be in full swing for a while, right?” Taeyong asked, tilting his head to let Johnny nip at the soft, pale skin in haste.

“N-no, it’s normally pretty immediate.” Johnny said quietly and he couldn’t help but feel a little embarrassed by that. Unlike Mark, he didn’t really have a build up, wasn’t particularly intimate or affectionate before. It was normally one thing that made him snap and that was when he realised he was in Rut, but Taeyong wouldn’t know that because Johnny’s cycle was  _ perfect _ . There wasn’t a day out of line until now and Johnny had always made sure to get to the Alpha room before his Rut started, appearing 6 days later looking exactly the same as he had when he’d left. Taeyong was much the opposite. His Heats were unpredictable and varied every time he had one. Sometimes he’d be clingy and whiny beforehand and sometimes he’d just be explicitly horny, trying to get Johnny alone every five minutes. It’d always been Johnny seeing Taeyong’s traits in Heat and never the other way around, he didn’t know what to expect.

“It’s strange seeing you like this, I always imagined it.” Taeyong spoke up, feeling Johnny’s hands trailing under his soft sweater and run over his body slowly, sensually and not once pulling his lips away from his neck.

“Hm, but we’ve had sex outside of Heats and Ruts.” Johnny retorted, rolling his hips down into Taeyong’s, licking and sucking on the skin under his jaw.

“Yes, but I’ve never seen you in Rut, I don’t know what you’re like.” Taeyong mused, arching into Johnny’s touch as he trailed his fingertips over his his ribs, stomach, down to the taut pull of his hips, “I e-even thought about where you’d mark me.”

“And what did you come up with?” Johnny questioned, genuinely curious as he reached for the hem of Taeyong’s sweater, pulling it over his head and letting him lay back again.

“Well, I thought about the usual,” He paused, turning his head in submission and running his fingers over his neck and windpipe, “Then I wondered about my collarbone. How pretty it might look if I were to wear loose, low-cut tops,” He continued, dragging his fingers down and across his prominent collarbones, “But how much better would it be if you did it here, just where I could tease you with those off-the-shoulder crop-tops I know you love so much.” He finished quietly, running his hand up to the juncture between his shoulder and neck, closer to his shoulder, and the very place Johnny absentmindedly massaged when he was nervous. Johnny momentarily closed his eyes and Taeyong knew that this was it, this was the last straw for Johnny’s Alpha and he was begging for it.

“You want everyone to see it?” Johnny growled out, eyes finally opening, pupils dilating and turning dark, this was it, “You want everyone to know you’re taken? Or you want to rile me up with it?” He smirked, nosing at the soft flesh of Taeyong’s neck and pinching the skin between his collarbones between his teeth.

“Let go, Johnny, you don’t have to fight it anymore.” Taeyong finally murmured, feeling Johnny tense up again, eyes squeezing shut as he silently fought his instincts. Johnny sighed slowly at the words, muscles finally relaxing as he let his lips continue mouthing at the skin over Taeyong’s taut abdomen.

“Fuck,” Johnny groaned out and Taeyong whined, lifting his hips against his will as Johnny gripped his hands on his waist, “Just- I- I love you, okay?” He added, teeth grazing his navel and travelling further down as he dragged his sweatpants down over his thighs, knees then off his ankles, discarding them across the room.

“I know,” Taeyong smiled, weaving his fingers into Johnny’s hair and throwing his head back as he felt Johnny mouth at his length, bucking up into his hot, wet mouth, “I love you too, baby.” He mumbled as his eyes fell shut, jaw slack as Johnny took his cock down to the base, hitting the back of his throat to distract him from the two fingers pressing past his rim. Taeyong was still fairly prepared from earlier, but the logical part of Johnny’s brain was still working and _ \- jesus, Taeyong was wet _ .

“Your heat finished, didn’t it?” Johnny commented, voice soft as he pulled off of Taeyong, breath fanning his sensitive cock as he spoke. Taeyong bit down on his lip as Johnny pressed his fingers deeper into him,

“Mhm, w-why?” He just about got out, throwing a hand above his head to grab at the soft sheets in an attempt at grounding himself.

“You’re still wet.” Johnny smirked, pulling his fingers away and lifting the slick-covered digits to Taeyong’s mouth, letting him taste himself, watching in awe. He hummed in appreciation, spending a little longer on Johnny’s fingers, lapping and sucking at them before they were finally pulled away from him, pressing insistently back at his entrance. 

“I’m p-prepped enough, Johnny, really.” Taeyong tried, but Johnny was smirking, surging up to kiss him fiercely, three fingers pressing him open as he tried his best to focus on something, anything, that might keep him from bucking his hips. Johnny was hitting deep, just not deep enough.

“Yes, but you haven’t had a knot before, baby.” Johnny replied, almost tauntingly and Taeyong was finding this a lot hotter than it really should be. He caved and bucked his hips.

“ _ Ah- _ b-but, I can manage, Alpha.” Taeyong whined, drool glistening on his lips and Johnny was smirking again, reaching his free hand up to press at Taeyong’s lips to let him suck on something. 

“It’s inevitable, you calling me ‘Alpha’, but it still sounds so good coming from your lips.” Johnny replied, groaning at the name and hitting particularly deep with four fingers now curling into Taeyong. He keened, writhing in Johnny’s hold a moment, only stilling when Johnny began hushing him. It wasn’t surprising that Johnny already had Taeyong writhing, what was surprising was the amount of slick Taeyong was producing, even now once his Heat had ended. 

“ _ Please, _ I’m ready now, I promise.” Taeyong begged this time and Johnny couldn’t say no to him anymore. He reached for his belt, ripping his jeans and boxers off in one before tearing his shirt over his head and Taeyong knew he’d never tire of seeing Johnny like this. He’d never tire of the way Johnny looked at him with those dark eyes, now hinted with lust and Alpha instincts, never tire of the way his muscles rippled under his skin, smooth and soft, yet strong and tough and sharp at every angle. The sharpness of his shoulders and the jut of his collarbones and pectorals, all the way down to his waist and abdomen, strong and firm under Taeyong’s hesitant fingers. He really would never get tired of seeing him like this, hair pushed back and lips swelling, abused and bitten from Taeyong’s need and desperation.

“Don’t take your eyes off of me.” Johnny spoke, voice low and gritty and Taeyong nodded, eyes wide and glistening now as he clenched around the feeling of emptiness, “Just concentrate on me, okay?” And there was a certain level of love and compassion that an Alpha could get through to an Omega whilst in Rut, but even Taeyong knew that he was exceeding this. He wondered, momentarily, if Johnny knew this. Taeyong reached up for his face, pressing his hips into the mattress as Johnny crawled over him, aligning himself with Taeyong’s entrance.

“Please don’t change after this. I love you just how you are.” Taeyong said quietly and Johnny smiled softly, kissing him deeply as he pressed in, bottoming out a moment later. 

“Anything for you, my darling.” Johnny smiled, pausing a moment as Taeyong whined after adjusting to the weight that settled within him.

“You can m-move.” Taeyong finally got out and Johnny kissed his neck, sucking hickies here and there before starting a steady pace with his hips, rocking into Taeyong and breathing unevenly into his skin. Johnny was gritting his teeth again and Taeyong knew he was holding back, trying his best not to hurt Taeyong, not to lose himself. He was close to saying something about it before Johnny did just what Taeyong was about to ask, and began pounding his hips into him, rutting shamelessly and groaning into his neck. His hands were pinning Taeyong’s hips down, but before he could so much as get used to the position he flipped him over, dragging his waist off the mattress to pound into him from behind, leaning over his back and growling against his ear.

“ _ Fuck _ , y-you feel so good,” Johnny was stuttering and suddenly pulling Taeyong up with him as he knelt on the bed, chest to back as Johnny wrapped his arms around his torso, revelling in the way Taeyong tilted his head in unadulterated submission. Johnny obliged, letting Taeyong drop his head back against his shoulder behind him before Johnny leant forward, focusing on Taeyong’s moans as he plunged his teeth into the place where his collarbone ended and his shoulder began.

“ _ Ah! F-fuck! _ ” Taeyong cried, meeting Johnny’s incessant thrusts as he continued his pace and Taeyong couldn’t concentrate on anything. One moment his senses were focused on the strain in his abdomen, then the pressing urge to cum, then the hands on his waist and now the feeling of blood dripping down his chest. Strangely, it didn’t hurt, it felt good in a sadistic sort of way. Johnny lapped his tongue over the wound and that felt so much better than Taeyong had’ve expected. He whined roughly, grinding his hips back against Johnny and moaning louder when that caused his prostate to be abused a little too harshly.

“So good, baby, you’re doing so well.” Johnny finally got out, pushing Taeyong back down on the mattress and flipping him onto his back before hooking a leg over his shoulder and thrusting back into him, body sated and tired as he unconsciously arched into Johnny’s touch, breath, scent, anything he could get of him. His mind was reeling, everything seemed to be too much but also not enough. Johnny’s fingers were leaving marks on his hips as he held him down and Taeyong could feel his legs going numb.

“I- I’m going to cum, J-Johnny, please!” Taeyong cried out, eyes filling now, choking on his words as he felt the base of Johnny’s cock catching on his rim, swelling every other thrust, “Please,  _ please _ , let me cum!” He was begging now and Johnny could almost laugh at the desperation. Taeyong was whipping his head to the side now, his eyes squeezed as he threw an arm above his head. Johnny growled in the back of his throat and Taeyong knew it as a warning, but something about it hit his very core and he was coming all over himself, hips bucking and squirming under Johnny's tightening grip. He knew that if Taeyong came too soon, he’d still have to be thrusting into him, still abusing his prostate and overstimulating him to the maximum, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. Taeyong cried out beneath him, tears spilling down his face as his body shook and Johnny could swear that he’d never seen anything so beautiful. 

“F-fuck,” He stuttered out and Taeyong could tell it was laced with hesitation, “This- this is going to hurt.” And Taeyong knew that much, but the stretch of Johnny's knot and the consistent thrusts to his prostate were more than he could’ve imagined. He silently thanked Johnny for insisting that the Alpha and Omega rooms were sound proofed properly, even if it did put them in a financial predicament. 

“Shit- J-Johnny, I can’t- I can’t take it-” Taeyong sobbed, but Johnny couldn’t process the words, couldn’t get through to himself. He couldn’t stop. His hips became frantic and Taeyong screamed out- he never knew he was a screamer. 

“Almost- almost there Taeyong-ah.” Johnny breathed heavily and Taeyong was trying to weakly push him away now, sobbing from overstimulation and thrashing around on the sheets. A few more thrusts had Taeyong drifting out of consciousness, but the press against his body didn’t stop, Johnny was ruthless. His Alpha was ruthless and Taeyong had to let it be. 

 

When he awoke, Johnny was curled up behind him. He didn’t remember how they’d got like this or when Johnny had stopped and his mind wasn’t supplying him anything. He tried to shift, tried to turn in Johnny’s arms, but a sharp pain cut through him, splitting from his thighs to his head. Johnny seemed to awake quickly from that. 

“Yong-ah? Don’t move, okay? It’s the knot, it’s only going to hurt if you try to turn over.” Johnny spike a little frantically and Taeyong groaned out as the pressure shifted within him, settling back down to do as Johnny said. 

“How long was I out?” Taeyong finally croaked out, his voice wrecked and scratchy. Johnny kissed the back of his neck,

“Awhile. But I couldn’t stop, I knew that if I did, then we’d have to do this all over again and I knew you couldn’t take that.” Johnny whispered and Taeyong locked their fingers at his chest. 

“Thank you, baby.” Taeyong replied, kissing his knuckles and relaxing into his arms, “Did it- did it work? Are we mated?” Taeyong asked, his voice weaker now. He was so tired. 

“If this is anything to go by, then it’s a yes from me.” Johnny giggled, running an index finger over the mark he’d flawed Taeyong’s shoulder with, watching as he shuddered and let out an involuntary moan. That was it. They were mated. All Taeyong wanted was to spin around and kiss Johnny until his lips hurt, he was beyond happy and Johnny could tell from the shift in scent. He giggled to himself and Johnny kissed his neck again, trying his utmost not to move his lower body and disarray the peace that Taeyong had found. 

“I love you,” Taeyong whispered huskily, his voice giving out now, but Johnny could hear the smile playing on his lips, he could feel the lightness that Taeyong held in his chest, “I love you so much.” He added breathlessly, Johnny knowing he was on the cusp of sleep again. 

“I love you more, Yong-ah, I love you more than you could imagine.”

 

Jaehyun was angry. He didn’t know his Alpha could get like this, but in all honesty, he was going to realise that he didn’t know a lot of things. He didn’t know how Heats worked, he didn’t know how feelings worked and he definitely didn’t know how falling in love worked. Jungwoo was sat on the bed whining as Doyoung left and Jaehyun suddenly couldn’t move. He’d made it to Jungwoo’s side, but he didn’t know what he was doing. He didn’t know how to mate an Omega, especially a boy Omega. 

“Uh- Alpha,  _ p-please _ , touch me.” Jungwoo begged, staring up at him with wide eyes and Jaehyun’s Rut was subsiding for a moment. As beautiful as Jungwoo looked, his head felt too heavy and his dominant feeling was  _ anger.  _ He couldn’t tell why, he couldn’t even get his brain to think beyond the body in front of him, but he was desperate. So desperate to find out why he felt like this and why his mind couldn’t experience the things that a  _ normal _ Alpha might experience when seeing their significant other thrusting their body down on a 7” dildo. 

“J-Jungwoo, I don’t know what I’m doing,” Jaehyun mumbled, his eyes turning dark a moment and Jungwoo knew that this was his first time with a boy, could tell that Jaehyun was scared under the mask of an Alpha, “You did this to me, Jungwoo. You have to fix it.” He added, a lot harsher than he’d perceived and Jungwoo was flinching back, sliding the dildo from himself and kneeling up on the bed to face Jaehyun.

“I-I did this to you? I don’t understand.” Jungwoo asked, his voice trembling and Jaehyung could see tears filling his eyes.  _ Ah yes,  _ he thought,  _ an Omega in Heat is a sensitive thing _ . Jaehyun grit his teeth, raising a hand to cradle Jungwoo’s face and watching as he shook his head in confusion, trying not to cry.

“My life isn’t supposed to be like this.” He grit out, leaning down to Jungwoo now, their breath mingling as Jungwoo leant back on the bed, Jaehyun hovering over him, “I’m not supposed to fall in love with a boy. I’m- I’m not supposed to be like you, Jungwoo, I’m supposed to have a female Omega under me right now. I’m supposed to make my parents happy and give them a grandchild, from a woman’s womb.” He stopped again, looking down at Jungwoo and feeling his heart break as he began to cry, lips trembling and eyes closing slowly.

“Stop,” He mumbled out, turning his head away from Jaehyun’s reach, “Stop, I’ve heard enough, Jaehyun.” Jungwoo tried to continue and he knew it was against Jaehyun’s rules, his life and his family, but somewhere he thought that maybe Jaehyun had grown on him. Maybe Jaehyun had started feeling something for him, maybe he had all along and was simply in denial, but-

“I’m not finished, Jungwoo. So, stop thinking so hard, it’s hurting my head.” Jaehyun rubbed his temples, then brought his hand back down to Jungwoo’s face, cradling him and looking at him with adoration, “I’m not supposed to be like this and my life wasn’t supposed to go this way, but I think- I think that if it’s with you, then I’ll be okay. I think that there’s always been something more than friends with you, Jungwoo, and I want you to teach me how to be good for you.” He finished up quietly and Jungwoo was beyond grateful that his Heat had subsided for him. They were silent for a moment and Jaehyun blinked down at him, wiping his tears away with his thumbs as he gave him time to process.

“Are you serious?” Jungwoo asked softly, his eyes brightening as he thought the words through. Jaehyun nodded and Jungwoo was surging upwards, pulling him into a kiss and bringing him back down onto the bed with him, his arms around his neck and in his hair. It was a long time before they pulled apart and by that time, Jungwoo’s Heat was hitting him back again. Jaehyun understood the moment he pulled back from the kiss and was quick in discarding his t-shirt, jeans and boxers, admiring the hungry look Jungwoo was giving him.

“S-so, how do I go about… doing this?” Jaehyun asked nervously and as much experience he’d had with girls didn’t seem to be helping out a whole lot in his current situation. Jungwoo pushed him up again, switching their places so he straddled Jaehyun’s thighs, leaning down to suck hickeys into his neck and chest and if Jaehyun had’ve been paying attention, he would’ve noticed Jungwoo sliding his fingers behind him, bringing back his slicked fingers and wrapping them around Jaehyun’s length. 

“Just let me do it all for now,” Jungwoo said softly, licking at his nipples and sucking down his abdomen, “I’ll tell you when you need to do something, okay?” Jaehyun watched him in amazement, eyebrows raised a moment before he nodded. Jungwoo continued jerking him in his slick-covered fist and Jaehyun seemed to be growling now, bucking his hips,

“Fuck, is that your slick?” He asked, throwing his head back for a moment before he regained himself enough to stare down at the hand around his length.

“Yeah, is there a problem?” Jungwoo sassed, leaning to lick at his navel and hips, grazing his teeth every few strokes. 

“No, it’s- it’s really fucking hot.” Jaehyun stuttered and Jungwoo was smirking, his confidence boosting now and he shifted himself on Jaehyun’s thigh as he felt slick seeping from him ass, “You smell good.” And, as it turned out, Jaehyun could in fact do this. He flipped Jungwoo onto his back now, shocking him a moment and silencing him with a kiss before he could protest. He was quick to react, bucking his hips up to try and get some friction against Jaehyun’s cock. He pulled back, watching Jungwoo as he tried to catch his breath, then pushed down his body, mouth diving for his ass and tonguing his slick, tasting him and fucking him open with his tongue.   
“A-Alpha!  _ Fuck- _ that fe-feels so good-  _ nghh! _ ” Jungwoo squirmed, but Jaehyun had his hips pinned to the mattress, humming into his hole and revelling in the fact that he had literally been pressing a dildo into this very place a few moments before. His old-self would probably have been disgusted, but he couldn’t stop when Jungwoo tasted this good, when he sounded so desperate, beautiful. It was mad that eating someone out could be such a turn on, Jaehyun had never seen it as that for himself, maybe even a chore, but Jungwoo was making it easy for him to get riled up.

“Mh, you taste so good, babe.” Jaehyung whispered between his thighs and as Jungwoo looked down at him, he had the sudden urge to cum. He moaned out and Jaehyun got back to work, lapping up the new slick he was producing and mouthing at his perineum.

“J-Jaehyun, hold on,” Jungwoo finally got out, stopping Jaehyun and making him look up in dismay, “Have you ever had a boy give you head?” He asked smoothly, only the tinge to his cheeks showing his embarrassment. Jaehyun looked up at him from between his legs, considering the question for a moment- of course he hadn’t.

“No, only girls-” He began, but Jungwoo was flipping their bodies, cutting him off from continuing as his ass settled over Jaehyun’s face, Jungwoo’s mouth at his cock.

“Let me show you.” Jungwoo said softly and as much as Jaehyun was occupied with his ass, sucking at the slick and dipping his tongue inside, he was losing focus from Jungwoo’s lips suddenly tracing his cock. The first difference Jaehyun noticed about boys giving head was that they took their time. All the girls he’d been with would devour him immediately, his size was impressive and he understood why they’d want to try going down on him, but they were never very good. They never knew how to rile him up, which was completely understandable because they didn’t know how it felt, they didn’t have cocks, how were they to know? But Jungwoo- Jungwoo did have a cock and he knew what he’d like, he knew how it’d feel and somehow that made the experience a thousand times better. He started off with riling him up, exactly how Jaehyun had wanted, lips and wet tongue tracing his cock and pressing at his slit until Jaehyun was gasping into his skin.

“Sh-shit, you’re really- _ ah _ \- really good at that.” Jaehyun stuttered out, gritting his teeth as Jungwoo slowly took him to the base, dragging his tongue everywhere and letting Jaehyun slowly shift his hips up into his mouth. It wasn’t long before Jaehyun was pulling away from his ass, moaning out and bucking up into Jungwoo’s throat, feeling him constrict around his length. He gagged a moment, but was quick to recover and was working harder than ever now, sucking and licking at every sensitive vein he could reach, at his head, his slit and all the way back down to his base, nuzzling his balls and doing it all again.

“Different, huh?” He questioned, pulling back a moment to observe Jaehyun’s expression behind him, a little smugly if you asked Jaehyun. He huffed out a breath, his Alpha realising how much he wanted to dominate this smug, little Omega with his ass in his face. He lifted Jungwoo’s hips off his body and threw him back onto his back, devouring his lips again, tasting himself mixed with Jungwoo’s slick. He’d never felt like this before.

“I’m going to fuck you so hard, Jungwoo.” He growled out and Jungwoo didn’t mind, he didn’t mind being used and pounded and, as filthy as it was, he wanted that pain, the pleasure, the crippling feeling of being nothing more than something for Jaehyun to fuck. 

“Please,  _ please, Alpha _ .” Jungwoo whined, reaching for his hands, his shoulders, anywhere. Jaehyun circled his fingers at his entrance, but Jungwoo could see the slightest doubt in his eyes, feel the unease in his chest and pushed his own hand between his thighs, pressing two fingers into himself. He didn’t particularly need stretching, he was past that from using- what seemed like- every dildo there was, it seemed more out of habit than anything. Jaehyun knew that from now on he was going to learn a lot more than love and self-control, this wasn’t going to be about learning about him and his Alpha instincts, this was going to be about how to make a boy feel good, how to treat a boy softly, treat Jungwoo like he could only ever be fucked by him. He realised now that he’d got everything so wrong, because in fact, Jungwoo was beautiful and Jungwoo was  _ a boy _ .

“Let me,” He muttered, pushing Jungwoo’s fingers away and replacing them with his own, letting Jungwoo’s expressions guide him, his hips bucking when Jaehyun hit his prostate and that seemed to be a good sign, “I-is this okay?” He asked, a little timidly and Jungwoo felt his Alpha retracting a moment, his true personality shining through and Jungwoo was smiling, eyes closed and lips parting.

“S-so good,” He cried out, rolling his hips up, “You can add another.” Jungwoo looked so perfectly blissed out and Jaehyun really couldn’t take his eyes off of him. He slipped a third finger in, meeting no tension, soft muscle and pliant hips. Jaehyun’s confidence came back slowly and Jungwoo tried his hardest to keep his eyes open long enough to watch Jaehyun’s Alpha sweep back into his expression. Jungwoo was getting desperate now, mumbling pleads between stuttered ‘curl your fingers’ or ‘yes, right there’’s. Jaehyun seemed proud of himself and Jungwoo was going to lose it if he wasn’t fucked within the next few minutes. He pushed away, Jaehyun’s fingers falling from him, covered in slick and dripping so prettily for him. Jungwoo flipped him back onto his back, kneeling over Jaehyun’s hips and groaning at the loss of contact, but Jaehyun was staring up at him in awe. 

“Let me show you something.” Jungwoo whispered hoarsely, gripping onto Jaehyun’s wrist and pulling the slick-covered fingers into his mouth as he swiped his other hand at the cleft of his ass, coating his other hand and bringing it back to lube Jaehyun’s cock up, teasing his own cock at his abdomen. Jaehyun placed a hand under his head, watching, judging, scrutinising his actions until Jungwoo met his eyes again, “Ready?” He said softly and Jaehyun was pulling his fingers from Jungwoo’s mouth, both hands slipping to his hips to gently help him guide himself down over his cock. 

“Fuck, yes,  _ yes _ .” Jaehyun got out, watching Jungwoo darkly as he reached behind himself to guide Jaehyun’s cock into him, sinking down onto him, a hand splayed on his stomach as he arched back. It was a moment later- stuttered, shaking breaths falling from Jungwoo’s lips- before they both adjusted, Jaehyun letting his breath hiss between his teeth. He unconsciously bucked his hips up and Jungwoo mewled out.

“ _ Shit,  _ g-give me a minute.” Jungwoo begged, getting used to the stretch. In reality, Jaehyun was a little bigger than any of his toys and as lovely as that was, it was making him tense up, the feeling still foreign to him.

“Relax, baby, I’ve got you.” Jaehyun soothed, throwing him an apologetic look as Jungwoo tried chewing on his nails, but Jaehyun was pulling his hand away, “Just breathe with me for a moment.” He added, exaggerating his breaths so Jungwoo could follow them, gripping his hand in his own as Jaehyun rubbed circles into his hip.

“O-okay, I’m alright, I’m okay.” He finally spoke up after a few moments, experimentally shifting his hips and leaning forward as he felt Jaehyun’s knot swell the slightest bit. He muttered a curse and Jaehyun shifted both hands back to his hips to help him out, gritting his teeth as not to lose the little self-control he had left. 

“You’re doing so well, just go slowly, okay?” Jaehyun said softly and Jungwoo was nodding, pursing his lips and pulling up a little more, shifting back down again so their thighs met again. Jungwoo whined out, this time in pleasure and Jaehyun smiled softly, whispering encouragement as he guided him faster, building their pace. Within a few minutes, Jungwoo was whimpering, almost falling to Jaehyun’s chest as he moved his hips, twisting when his prostate was hit. Their climaxes were nearing and Jungwoo suddenly fell to his chest,

“J-Jaehyun, you h-have to bite me,” Jungwoo got out shortly, whining into his neck and Jaehyun was huffing a laugh.

“Is this one of your kinks or someth-” He began, but Jungwoo’s whines were cutting him off, his hand travelling between them to jerk into his hand, in time with Jaehyun’s inconsistent thrusts.

“N-no, Jaehyun! The- the mark, you have t-to mark me.” Jungwoo tried to explain and Jaehyun suddenly caught on, choking out a curse and groaning deep into Jungwoo’s hair. He leant into Jungwoo’s neck, licking the skin right beneath his ear, just beside his jaw, before harshly plunging his teeth into the space. And Jungwoo had never felt something like this, for a split moment, all of his senses heightened and he could suddenly feel every inch of Jaehyun within him, every vein, every ridge of skin and drop of slick. He closed his eyes and Jaehyun was left doing all the work of their colliding hips, Jungwoo falling limp against his chest and whining, sobbing into his neck. 

“ _ Jae-hyun, _ I’m- fuck-  _ I’m coming. _ ” Jungwoo suddenly gasped and Jaehyun was gritting his teeth, releasing the bite on his neck and lapping the blood up onto his tongue. His mind was short-circuiting on the sounds that Jungwoo was making, his moans and whines finally pushing him over the edge as he bucked up into Jungwoo’s limp body, abusing his prostate a few more times.

“Fu-fuck, do- do I have to pull out?” Jaehyun suddenly said shakily, trying to remove his hips but Jungwoo was crying out, finding enough strength to press his hips back down so they were locked together.

“N-no! Y-you have to knot me, Al-alpha!” Jungwoo cried desperately, feeling the pressure become stronger and Jaehyun’s cock locking them both in place. Jaehyun kissed his neck softly, coming inside of him and moaning out. That was the last thing Jungwoo remembered before blacking out.

 

Upstairs, Chenle was getting restless, they all were, but Chenle especially so. When it came down to scents, he was incredible. He could tell who was in a room, how many people and their moods without even looking. He could distinguish them and sometimes it was an amazing trait, but other times, not so much. It was almost evening and he’d already passed out twice. The others had always worried about it, ever since the beginning when he was able to count how many people would be coming to their press conferences with his eyes closed. They’d wondered what it’d be like when it came down to Heats and Ruts, but it hadn’t occurred that there would be Mating happening under the same roof, especially not two at the same time. On top of that, he could always sense Heats and Ruts the first, like he’d done with Mark, and their saving grace was currently on the verge of going into Rut. Doyoung hadn’t seemed to notice it himself, but Chenle had and when it was someone a lot older, it was a little awkward, maybe he was overstepping. He emerged from his bedroom at just after 5pm, Ten and Sicheng sitting together on the countertop. They seemed to be talking about something, but Chenle couldn’t decipher, besides, he didn’t want to snoop.

“Chenle! How are you feeling?” Ten called, noticing him lingering in the doorway and getting down from the table to guide him in. Chenle tried not to notice the look Sicheng shared with Ten, but it was a little nerve-wracking. 

“I’m o-okay.” He said shakily and Sicheng frowned, pulling him up to sit beside him as Ten began making him something to eat. 

“You don’t have to lie to us, Chenle, we want to help.” Sicheng said softly and Chenle felt like crying. He didn’t know why, he didn’t know what was causing it and it was scaring him. Sicheng pulled him into his arms before his lips started trembling, betraying him. Ten dropped what he was doing and quickly made his way towards them both, focusing himself to let off a calming pheromone and not an anxious one.

“What is it, darling?” Ten asked, running his hand up and down Chenle’s back and drying his tears when Sicheng pulled back. He sniffed quietly,

“I- I don’t know, Hyung. I’m scared and everything feels strange and everyone’s scents are too strong and it hurts.” Chenle sobbed, wiping his eyes with small fists and hiccuping now. Sicheng sighed softly, knowing how he felt, but not to the extent he was feeling. 

“Okay, just breathe a second, alright?” Sicheng soothed, pushing his hair back from his face as Ten rubbed a hand on his thigh.

“What hurts, Chenle?” Ten asked a little warily.

“My head.” Chenle said shortly.

“Nothing else?” Sicheng now.

“Nothing- I’m not going into Heat, it’s just the amount of pheromones and it’s hurting my head and my chest and I feel sick.” Chenle tried to explain and Ten was nodding his understanding, cradling his face again to wipe away his tears.

“And it’s just the pheromones, nothing else?” Ten checked again, but Chenle was looking at the floor now, avoiding everyone’s eyes. They were quiet for a moment and Sicheng looked at Ten in worry.

“Doyung-Hyung, his-his Rut is coming up earlier and it’s the worst scent of all. N-not in a bad way, I didn’t mean it like that! I just mean that he usually has the best scent to calm us down when it gets like this, but now I don’t have that and his scent is so much stronger that I can’t even focus. I can’t tell you how many times I tried to talk to Jaemin in Chinese and he had to tell me that he didn’t understand. I can’t even focus on what language I’m speaking, Hyung!” It was clear that it was frustrating Chenle, but it was also hurting him. He clutched his chest every few moments and his eyes kept glazing, going unfocused and looking right through Ten. Sicheng nodded thoughtfully and they were silent for another moment.

“Sicheng, go and get Taeil.” Ten said, watching him hop off the counter obediently, “Chenle, why didn’t you tell us sooner?” Ten turned back to him, pushing his hair back and trying to soothe him again.

“You all had more complicated things to worry about and I didn’t want to bother you.” Chenle mumbled, not making eye contact. Taeil appeared a moment later, Chenle knowing he was there without even having to lift his head. 

“What’s the matter, Chenle?” He asked softly, rushing towards him to bring him into his arms, Ten stepping back to let them have a moment, “Oh, darling, are you alright?” He asked and Chenle began to cry again.

“I-I can’t-” Chenle began, cutting off with a sob and letting Ten explain for him.

“The scents, they’re too strong for him. He can’t focus, it’s hurting him, Hyung.” Ten spoke, letting Taeil run his hands through Chenle’s hair in order of calming him. Taeil sighed, letting Chenle sit back up again,

“I thought this might happen,” Taeil said softly, but Chenle seemed calmer now, “Okay, I have an idea, but I’m going to have to make some calls first.” He ran a hand down Chenle’s arm and looked to Ten.

“Oh, and also, Doyoung is going into Rut early.” Ten added and Taeil rolled his eyes in annoyance. Chenle was almost giggling at that.

“Okay, okay, right,” He paused again, pinching the bridge of his nose, “Ten, you book a hotel for you and Chenle until things calm down and I’ll clear the both of your schedules for now.” He said decisively and Ten was nodding, pressing a kiss to the top of Chenle’s head as he quickly rushed away. Taeil sighed again, hugging Chenle to his chest,

“I’m sorry, Hyung, it’s a lot of trouble for you-” Chenle began, but he was pulling back in shock, cutting him off before he could finish.

“Don’t ever apologise, Chenle. We need you to be happy and healthy and that only works if you let us know when you’re not. That way we can get you better and look after you, okay? So, don’t apologise and never put off from telling us things, darling.” Taeil said smoothly, cradling his face and holding his gaze. Chenle wanted to cry again.

Ten appeared a few moments later, Taeil having made something for Chenle to eat before they left the apartment. 

“Okay, I’ve booked the hotel for two nights, but we can extend it if the others aren’t done by then. Hopefully now you’ll get a good night’s rest, you look exhausted.” Ten observed, ruffling his hair gently and putting his phone down on the counter. Sicheng had packed him an overnight bag and was stacking an assortment of plushies and blankets beside it. Ten threw him a confused look,

“They’re all the Omega scents. We didn’t know who’s he liked best so we each scented our own for him.” Sicheng shrugged, placing a Stitch toy on top, “That ones mine.” He added with a wink and Chenle smiled softly, thanking him for the thoughtful gesture as they began pulling their shoes on. 


	4. Chapter 4

Johnny and Taeyong were done first, within the next day and a half, in fact. They were lucky, as Doyoung was going into Rut, rather rapidly as Chenle had sensed. Johnny appeared first, rubbing his eyes and pushing his damp hair from his face. He smelled fresh, his scent diluted and a little different now he was mated. Renjun was the first to get to him, almost tripping on the laundry basket as he leapt into his arms. Lucas, Yuta and Kun were next to file in, the same time that Taeyong appeared, linking his arm around Johnny’s, almost shyly. It wasn’t like everyone didn’t know what they’d done, it was simply the fact that Taeyong just  _ knew _ he was going to be fawned over. As if on cue, Kun bounded forward, hugging him tightly and sniffing his neck,

“You smell so nice! I love it,” He exclaimed, pulling back, to hook a finger under the neckline of his shirt, “Let me see it,  _ please, _ Hyung!” Kun begged, eyes searching for the pretty mark that he wanted so badly. He knew that him and Yuta would be the next to Mate and that was terrifyingly, exciting. 

“So nosey, I can’t believe you Kun.” Taeyong joked, fake rolling his eyes as he pulled his shirt down a little, letting Kun run his fingers over it in awe. Yuta was behind him in a moment, eyeing the mark as well,

“Hm, you want one too, Kunnie?” Yuta cooed, wrapping his arms around his waist as Taeyong pulled his shirt back into place and smiled at the both of them, eyeing Johnny who was hugging Lucas, thanking him for looking after everyone, in his peripheral vision. 

“Shut up, Yu.” Kun teased, mock-punching his shoulder with a giggle, Taeyong ruffled his hair, “Hey, are you hungry, Hyung?” He added, looking up at him expectantly.

“A little, who’s cooking?” Taeyong asked, absentminded, his eyes drifting back to Johnny as the others filed in, hugging him and smiling.

“I think we should order takeout. Then when Jaehyun and Jungwoo are back, we can go out for a meal, what do you think?” Kun said excitedly and Yuta wanted to kiss his neck and make him giggle.  _ Damn, he really is getting to me,  _ Yuta thought. 

“Sounds good to me, hey, I’ll be back in one second.” Taeyong said quickly, smiling again and handing them his phone to order with. Johnny was looking back at him now, straight over Taeil’s shoulder.

“Hey, Hyung.” Taeyong approached them, nudging Taeil and hugging him tightly, “How are you?” He asked and Johnny was pulling him in by the waist and suddenly his head didn’t feel so heavy. It was strange to think that they’d only been mated for a day and a half, yet Taeyong felt it’d been forever. He knew he’d be clingy on the first few days, Johnny knew too, but he’d never been like this. He’d never been so desperate to be beside Johnny that he cut off conversation. He hoped that faded out, it wasn’t healthy to be that devoted to your Mate.

“Taeyong! You look well, how’s the transition?” Taeil asked, ruffling his hair as he stepped into Johnny’s hold, his hand slipping around his waist. 

“It’s okay, I’m getting a few withdrawal symptoms from Johnny, but all-in-all, it could be worse.” He shrugged, Taeil nodding, “Hey, did Chenle and Ten take Doyoung down with Mark? I haven’t seen them yet.” He asked, a frown furrowing between his brows. 

“Oh, no, Chenle was feeling unwell from all the pheromones, so Ten took him to a Hotel for a few days.” Taeil explained and Johnny’s face split in worry, Taeyong looking the same, “He’s okay, but he did pass out twice in one day-”

“He passed out twice?” Johnny yelped, the same time as Taeyong spoke,

“Why didn’t you call us?” Taeil smirked, shaking his head.

“Why would I have called Johnny out of Rut and postponed you Mating for something we could deal with? Besides, Johnny’s Rut would’ve made it worse for him.” Taeil explained and Johnny was still a little frantic.

“But when is he coming back? Is he okay? Shall I book him a clinic appointment, I can take him now if Ten needs a break. Taeyong, we can go now, right?” Johnny ranted and Taeyong was nodding frantically in agreement, disregarding the pain in his thighs and lower back. If Chenle needed to see a nurse, then Chenle was priority.

“Calm down, he’s fine. He’s just really sensitive to pheromones, you know how it is.” Taeil shrugged, “It was hurting him so we thought it best to remove him from the scene a bit and Ten’s been looking after him really well. He said that he’s been feeling a lot better since being out of the apartment.” He explained and Taeyong was sighing in relief, Johnny still a little on edge at the whole ordeal.

“So, you’re waiting until Jaehyun and Jungwoo are done before you bring him back?” Taeyong asked to try and soothe Johnny’s nerves. 

“Yes, he might be back before then, if the scents calm down a bit. We’ll have to see.” Taeil explained, Jeno sidling up beside him, Jaemin on his heels as he tried to sneak a peek at Taeyong’s pretty mating scar. Taeyong noticed, pulling Jaemin closer so he could take a proper look. Jaemin cooed, tracing his fingers over it and Taeyong smiled, ruffling his hair.

“Maybe Jungwoo-Hyung’s will be pretty like yours as well.” Jaemin commented, eyes sparkling as Renjun joined them and Johnny couldn’t help but feel strangely,  _ proud  _ of himself. Taeyong just looked so happy and  _ he had made that happen. _

 

The sound of gasping and panting awoke Jungwoo and he was suddenly very aware that the mattress beneath him was moving.

“J-Jaehyun?” Jungwoo called, still disorientated as he sat up, only then realising that the mattress was not moving, Jaehyun was moving. Jaehyun was the mattress, “Shit, I’m sorry, baby.” He attempted to move off his hips, but the knot shot a pain straight up to his head. His head. He was now aware that his head didn’t feel so heavy, so misted with Heat. They’d done it, he was Mated and they’d done i-

“H-help, pl-please- no!” Jaehyun was thrashing beneath him and Jungwoo’s attention was right back on him. It wasn’t Jungwoo’s weight that was making him shift, no, this was not even a usual nightmare. A sheen of sweat covered his body and Jungwoo wondered if something had gone wrong, their Mating hadn’t gone according to plans or- “No! You can’t t-take  _ him _ ! Not my Jungw-  _ ah _ ! N-no, please, ta-take me  _ please! _ ” Jaehyun was throwing his hands about now and Jungwoo couldn’t watch any longer. He took a hold of Jaehyun’s wrists, pinning them to the bed with one hand as he cradled his face with the other, leaning down to stare at him.

“Jaehyun! Hyun-ah, please wake up, you’re scaring me.” Jungwoo choked out and,  _ no, _ he wouldn’t cry. Crying only made him feel weak nowadays. He couldn’t spend another moment crying, “Come on, Jaehyun, wake up!” He raised his voice and that seemed to do it. Jaehyun was jolting awake, fingers curling to fists as he gasped for air. It reminded Jungwoo of how his swimming teacher used to hold him under the water to ‘toughen the Omega’s up’. He’d gasp like this and his older brother would be running to his side, throwing their teacher dirty looks as he dragged Jungwoo out of the pool. They’d go for ice-cream afterwards. 

“J-Jungwoo? What ha- are you okay? Where did they-  _ ah! _ ” Jaehyun interrupted his thoughts, eyes watering and breathes coming hard. Jungwoo’s expression softened and he leant down into Jaehyun’s arms, feeling the knot shift within him as he curled his arms around his shoulders.

“You’re okay, it’s okay.” Jungwoo said softly and Jaehyun was sighing, looping his arms around his waist and pressing his nose into Jungwoo’s neck, scenting him until it was the only thing engulfing his senses, “It was just a bad dream, you’re here, with me.” He tried to reassure and Jaehyun felt like he might cry. He was so lucky.

“I-I’m sorry I scared you.” Jaehyun whispered into his neck, but Jungwoo was shaking his head, running his fingers into his hair kissing the shell of his ear, “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologise, baby, it’s okay. How do you feel?” Jungwoo pulled back a moment, a hand cradling his face again to stare deeper into his eyes. Jaehyun was silent for a moment, breathing steadily, but avoiding Jungwoo’s gaze,

“I’ll be fine, I just- I th-thought I lost you.” Jaehyun let out a shaky breath, interlocking his fingers with Jungwoo’s and finding purchase on his hips, “I was so scared of losing you.” He added and Jungwoo was pulling him back in again, kissing his neck and shoulders and anywhere he could reach. They breathed in the moment, savouring it for a few more moments before either of them spoke.

“We can stay down here a while. We’re done with Mating now, but they don’t have to know that.” Jungwoo smiled slyly and Jaehyun was huffing out a laugh, running his fingers up and down his back.

“Yeah, that sounds good,” He spoke, looking down between their naked bodies to try and get a look at himself, “How’s it feeling? We still have to wait a little while before it goes down anyway, right?” He questioned and Jungwoo nodded, leaning back down on to his chest as they settled again, breathing each other’s scents and planting lazy kisses on sticky skin.

“Jaehyun, can I ask something?” Jungwoo wondered aloud, running a fingertip across his collarbones and pectorals. Jaehyun gave a grunt for agreement before Jungwoo spoke, “H-how do you know so little about Alpha’s and Omega’s? Your parents were Alpha’s and Omega’s, right? They never taught you?” He felt like he was overstepping, no, he knew he was overstepping, but he was curious and he wanted to help educate him. He didn’t want to seem like the more knowledgeable one, but he was and he wanted Jaehyun to get to share that knowledge as well. He was silent for a moment and Jungwoo almost took it all back, made up an excuse about being too talkative after Heats, something ridiculous.

“Well, I do, just not when it’s two boys or two girls. I don’t know  _ anything _ , do I.” He said decisively, thinking harder as he stared up at the ceiling. Jungwoo shifted his head ‘no’, hair bouncing on Jaehyun’s bare chest as he went to correct him,

“Of course you know things, don’t be silly, Jaehyun. I don’t know a lot about straight sex, if I’m honest. My family and I knew I liked boys from a long time ago, so it didn’t get taught much at home.” He shrugged and Jaehyun smiled, feeling a little more comfortable.

“Can I ask a question, now?” Jaehyun asked, eyes flicking down to Jungwoo’s then back up at the ceiling as he nodded, “Did it hurt? Did I hurt you?” He sounded hesitant and Jungwoo knew this expression, knew this feeling. It was almost verging on guilt.

“Only a little bit,” He lied and Jaehyun could  _ feel _ it. That must have been another trick for bonded Mate’s, “I’ll be fine.” Another lie.

“I want to have seven kids with you, Jungwoo.” Jaehyun suddenly threw out.

“You- what? Jaehy-” 

“Did you feel it? In your stomach, no, just between your ribs. Near your diaphragm.” He asks, eyebrow raised.

“Aren’t going to continue talking about how you want me to give you  _ seven kids? _ ” Jungwoo exclaimed, eyebrows drawn together, “My body is not built for carrying  _ seven-!”  _ He continued, but Jaehyun was shaking his head.

“No, no, you don’t get it. Concentrate, Jungwoo, I want  _ seven _ kids with you.” Jaehyun said again and Jungwoo sort of understood this time.

“Right between my ribs, what was it?” He questioned, only now feeling the impact of Jaehyun’s lie, a tiny twinge, barely noticeable, but it was there.

“I know when your lying, Jungwoo.” Jaehyun said smoothly and Jungwoo was- in fact- still completely confused, “So, how much did it really hurt? Tell me so I can look after you.” He went on, but Jungwoo was still hung up on their previous discovery.

“W-wait, is this a Mating-thing? You can feel when I’m not telling the truth?” Jungwoo asked, Jaehyun mock rolling his eyes as if it were such a hardship to have such a beautiful boy sitting over his hips asking too many questions after they’d just had the most incredible sex.

“I think it’s a bond-thing. Like when another Alpha touched you when I wasn’t around, I’d felt like my chest was caving in and I was going to die.” Jaehyun said with a smile and Jungwoo really was, very confused.

“What the ever-living fuck.” Jungwoo said with a grimace, “When was this? How much don’t I remember? How did you- I don’t understand.” Jungwoo mumbled out and Jaehyun sighed a moment, thinking back to how wild he was, the quick flashes he remembered- Kun’s body beneath him, Taeyong lying unconscious against the fridge, and Sicheng, little Sicheng, gasping and trying to shift his weight to save Kun from losing oxygen- it was better when he didn’t remember. He didn’t want to have to face them after this, how could he? 

“I- we- It’s difficult to explain, but I hurt Kun and Taeyong and Sicheng and then you were here, right in front of me and they were strapping me in that chair- you remember?- and I had to get you out of Heat- well, it wasn’t really getting you out of Heat.” He paused to catch his breath and Jungwoo looked at him, a frown forming between his eyes, “Y-you thought your Alpha had rejected you after I accidentally set up a bond. I don’t know how I did it, but I think it was an unconscious way of protecting you whilst I was gone. Any Alpha that touched you was almost burnt by your skin, it didn’t affect you, but I felt everyone’s touch on you. Someone touched your arm when I was in Osaka airport and the paramedics had to come out because I passed out from the pain. They were human, of course, apart from one Beta nearby who said he’d help me out and pretended to run tests with the medics in order of getting them away. The next time someone touched you was when I was right here, in front of you and Johnny used his Alpha voice. I screamed so loud, I was surprised that didn’t rouse you from your nice little wet dream.” Jaehyun winked mischievously, but Jungwoo was shaking his head in utter confusion. Only about fifty percent of what Jaehyun had just said seemed to go into his head. 

“So, I was like a channel between you and another Alpha?” Jungwoo cocked his head and Jaehyun was shaking his head with a laugh.

“No, no, I was trying to protect you from anyone getting to you before I did. Kun said he could touch you just fine, but the Alpha’s would be burnt and it’d warn them off from you.” Jaehyun explained and Jungwoo was nodding now, “It took its toll on me as well, though, almost like a punishment for not being with you sooner. I never should’ve left, really.” He said thoughtfully and Jungwoo was sighing into his chest.

“Well, you had to learn for yourself, Hyun-ah.” Jungwoo shrugged, scenting him for his own peace of mind. It was nice, being able to scent each other whenever they wanted. He’d miss this peace.

“I was so worried about you. Johnny came in some times and got things from the lockers, fed me, gave me water and asked how you were doing. I had to check on you through the bond. After the first few tries at getting through to you, you were really angry at me, but you finally let me in and I could tell Johnny that you were okay. I don’t think I’d ever been that relieved in my life. Not to mention, tired, but mostly just relieved that you were okay.” Jaehyun continued, reminding himself of just how much strength it took to get through to Jungwoo, let alone getting him to answer. 

“I was angry with you?” Jungwoo asked and Jaehyun nodded, “I’m sorry, I’m not angry anymore. I promise.” And Jaehyun didn’t feel the twinge in his stomach. That wasn’t a lie.

“You had a right to be angry at me. You almost lost yourself to your Omega because of me.” Jaehyun said mournfully, but Jungwoo shook his head again, “You should still be angry with me. I regret so much. I was- I was scared and I know that’s not an excuse, but-”

“But I also  _ didn’t _ lose myself to my Omega because of you.” Jungwoo contradicted, “I’m not angry, Jaehyun, I can’t be angry for something you can’t control.” He continued and Jaehyun was shaking his head now.

“But I  _ could _ control whether I was a fuck-up and I didn’t. I said so many things that I regret, I did things that I wouldn’t wish to be done on anyone, let alone my  _ friends _ . I’m so sorry. I really am, Jungwoo.” He rambled, chest feeling tight so that Jungwoo could feel it too. He knew he felt guilty, he knew he felt confused, but he also knew that people make mistakes and how could he criticise Jaehyun when he’d made his own? There was no point in fighting anymore. They were Mated. It was done now. No more arguments, no more running away.

“I forgive you, but just know that I’m sorry too. I pressed, I told you I had feelings for you when you weren’t even able to process what you felt towards people of the same gender. I should’ve given you time, given you space and let you figure things out on your own, but I put my needs first and it ended up hurting you. I’m sorry.” Jungwoo sighed, sitting up to meet Jaehyun’s gaze, letting him know that he meant what he was saying. They were quiet for a moment, Jaehyun reaching a hand up to cradle Jungwoo’s face, thumb brushing his cheekbone and down to his lips. It was almost comical that those very lips had been so utterly sinful a few hours before. The tightness in Jaehyun’s chest began to subside and Jungwoo breathed out slowly, smiling down at him and turning his head into the touch.

“Come here, baby.” Jaehyun whispered, like a secret just between the two of them, pulling Jungwoo’s body back down against his, “You need to rest, Woo-ah, I can feel how tired you are.” He added, carding his fingers through Jungwoo’s hair in order of getting him to sleep. The knot wasn’t deflating any and Jungwoo’s body was still low on energy.

“M’kay. Wake me up when we can move, I’m hungry.” He giggled in response, Jaehyun huffing out a laugh of his own, jolting Jungwoo’s body on his chest. He knew that Mating with Jaehyun would never be a mistake.

 

Johnny awoke the following morning with the rest of the group asleep around the room. He didn’t remember why they hadn’t moved to their separate bedrooms, but the entire group- spare Doyoung, Jungwoo, Jaehyun, Ten and Chenle- were out cold across the living room. Taeyong was laying on his chest between his legs and he wondered when they’d even sat down, let alone ended up in this position. A notification popped up on the TV screen and he eyed it a moment before opening it. It was a voice message from Jungwoo, he had merely just expected them to ask to come up when they were ready, but he listened on,

“Is Johnny-Hyung there?” There was a pause in which he guessed Jungwoo was giving time for whoever else might have opened it to find Johnny, “I- I have a question, Hyung. How- how upset is everyone with Jaehyun? He doesn’t remember a lot, but he keeps saying he’s scared about it. He wants to apologise and explain things and try to make amends, but he’s scared that the others won’t even hear him out. W-what should I do?” Jungwoo’s voice cut off and Johnny sighed. He wondered if anyone else in the living area had overheard it, but it seemed unlikely with the calming scent invading the living room. It was an almost-neutral scent when everyone was asleep; vulnerability and peace was what Taeyong called it. He used to say it was like putting their kids to bed. Johnny had laughed back then, but he sort of saw the truth in it now.

“H-hyung?” Lucas spoke from a mountain of bedding, Jisung laying on his chest, still asleep, “Are you okay?” He sounded like he’d only just woken up, his eyes still half-closed and dreary, so Johnny doubted he’d overheard the message Jungwoo had left.

“Hm? Oh, yeah, how did you sleep?” Johnny replied, still a little dazed as he watched Taeyong shift against him, hands finding his shoulders and pressing his face into his neck. Unconsciously scenting- that was another thing Taeyong had started doing since they Mated; it was cute.

“Yeah, fine,” He replied shortly, eyebrows pulling together before he continued, “Will- will Jaehyun-Hyung and Jungwoo-Hyung be okay? It’s been a while now and- I’m just worried, I guess.” He sighed in annoyance, not being able to find the right words, especially in a language that wasn’t his mother-tongue.

“Jungwoo sent a message, so I think they’ll be fine. From what I’m guessing, they’re all done, so hopefully they’ll be back up by this evening. Then Chenle and Ten can come back as well.” Johnny smiled reassuringly, trying to not let his uneasy scent reach Lucas. He nodded once in response, combing a hand into Jisung’s hair and letting him groan tiredly against his sweater.

Jaehyun breathed deeply, his and Jungwoo’s combined scent surrounding him as they stood across from one another. 

“It’ll be okay. They know it wasn’t you, so- try not to worry, okay?” Jungwoo was drying his hair with a hand towel, still damp from Jaehyun’s hair as well. He should’ve let Jungwoo shower first, he was the one that needed to be treated gently, “Jaehyun, are you listening?” Jungwoo’s voice came again and he sighed deeply.

“I’m sorry, I just- what if they can’t forgive me?” He rushed out and Jungwoo was stepping forward now, his shirt was falling of his shoulders. Jaehyun’s eyes found the Mating mark and he reached out to trace a finger over it, but Jungwoo’s hand caught his wrist,

“Listen to me,” Jungwoo spoke firmer now and Jaehyun couldn’t afford to get distracted again, “Are you listening?” He nodded, “You have to calm down. Just show that you’re sincere, don’t let them down. If they don’t forgive you then they’ll come around at some point, okay? I’ll be right there beside you, alright?” Jungwoo finished softly, Jaehyun’s eyes melting into his own as he leant in to kiss him softly, slow enough to savour the moment. They pulled apart a moment later, Jaehyun’s fingers starting to travel to places they shouldn’t be. He sighed heavily,

“Okay, let’s call Johnny.” Jaehyun mumbled reluctantly.

Chenle was going to be sick. He didn’t know exactly why he thought he might be sick, but he was going to be sick. Ten was in the driver’s seat, a reassuring hand on Chenle’s thigh, throwing him worried looks every few minutes. 

“Are you okay? We can pull over if you fe-” Ten began for the hundred-and-twentieth time that morning.

“I’m fine, just keep driving.” Chenle gasped out. They should’ve rung Johnny, or Taeyong or maybe both of them. Something was wrong and Ten could tell, but everytime he tried to ask Chenle about it, he shut off. They’d been driving for hours now, leaving the hotel at four am when Chenle started to get stir-crazy. He never liked being in the same place for too long. 

“Chenle, your scent is getting-” Ten began, but Chenle was turning to him with a dark expression, anger seething off of him.

“I said I’m fine, Ten!” He yelled, gritting his jaw and clenching his fists at his side. Ten pulled into a layby, turning in his seat.

“What the hell is going on?” Ten yelled back this time. He was never really inclined to yell at the younger ones, they were mostly always well behaved, and even if they weren’t they just needed a firm word, never yelling. Chenle looked up at him with glassy eyes and suddenly Ten felt regret creeping up his throat, this is why they didn’t yell at the little ones.

“I- I- just drive, Ten!” He was almost breaking, if he had of been just that little bit more vulnerable he would’ve told him, but his guards were up and his head felt fuzzier than it had this morning.

“No, I’m not leaving here until you tell me what’s going on. I got up at four am to drive you around, try and calm you down and for what? You won’t even tell me what’s bothering you!” Ten’s voice was still loud, just not quite a yell like before. Chenle hiccuped and Ten knew that from now on, he had to be gentle with him, had to talk softly and hold him and let him cry if he wanted to. They were silent, the sound of cars passing them and the engine dying in the background. Chenle stared at his hands, Ten stared at Chenle.

“I think I’m defective.” He said shortly, a tear rolling down his cheek. Ten waited for him to continue, but there was silence again.

“What do you mean?” He asked, reaching out to wipe the tear away with his thumb, but Chenle flinched away, catching his hand in his own and finally looking up at him.

“I think I’m a defective Omega.” Chenle minorly elaborated and Ten was still confused.

“How so?”

“Because.”

“Just because?” Ten quirked an eyebrow, worry seeping across his face.

“Just because.” Chenle confirmed, twisting his fingers around one another and then unlinking them, only to repeat the action.

“Well, what made you think this in the first place?” Ten tried again, wanting to get to the bottom of things before he started contradicting Chenle’s statement. There was another long pause, Ten worried that he’d just have to keep driving and let the subject drop, until Chenle sobbed quietly, putting him on high-alert.

“I- I’m not like the other Omegas.” He choked out, voice tripping over itself in order of getting the words out quickly. Ten waited, “I don’t- I don’t think I’m even an Omega.” He tried to explain, only furthering Ten’s confusion. Chenle was definitely an Omega. There was absolutely no doubt about it. His scent spoke for itself and his sense of smell only deepened that affirmation.

“Slow down,” Ten said softly, holding Chenle’s face between his hands now, helping him breathe slower and wiping his tears, “Why don’t you think you’re an Omega? Do you not want to be?” He asked, a furrow between his brows as he tried his hardest to understand.

“No, I’m- I just don’t  _ think _ like an Omega.” He hiccuped again, running the back of his hand over his face once Ten released him, “Hyung, I- I think I’ve fallen for a Beta.” 

 

Johnny held onto Jungwoo for a very long time, longer than necessary, that was for sure. Taeyong eventually had to come and prise him away in order of Jungwoo getting something substantial to eat.

“Hyung, I’m okay, really.” Jungwoo persisted as Johnny held him, “Are you- are you crying?” And yes, after all of this, Johnny was crying. He wasn’t quite sure why he was crying, but he was and Jungwoo had ended up passing him back to Taeyong a little apologetically, almost as if he’d personally made him upset.

Jaehyun had done the apologies, that bit was easy, it was the forgiving that was the hard bit. Yuta had insisted on staying beside Kun as he apologised, still wary of the Alpha, a protective arm around Kun’s waist. It had actually been relatively easy, Kun had forgiven him and Jaehyun had hugged him, much to Yuta’s dismay. Taeyong had been the easiest, he had seen Johnny like this and he knew that that hadn’t been the real Johnny. He had even said that he didn’t even really need an apology, but Jaehyun was insistent. Then there was Sicheng- tougher than he looked, but weaker than he felt. Jaehyun could tell that the moment the words left his mouth, Sicheng was lying from that point forward.

“It’s okay, you didn’t hurt me too much anyway.” He smiled shakily, but Jaehyun could see right through it. There was nothing he could say to make Sicheng forgive him, nothing he could do to make him forget. They were sat in Jaehyun’s room, giving Sicheng the availability to leave, should he want to.

“I did hurt you, Sicheng. You can’t deny it and I can’t take back my actions. If I could, then I would, but I can’t and I don’t know where that leaves us.” Jaehyun went on, awkward and stilted and never like their relationship before. Actually, they’d never really had much of a relationship before, but he wanted one now. He couldn’t figure if that was down to his change of heart or Jungwoo’s continued support, but he simply wanted to be ‘better’. 

“I said it’s okay, Jaehyun, let’s just drop it.” Sicheng snapped, getting up to leave and Jaehyun knew he had to let him go. It was threatening, an Alpha making an Omega stay, and he’d already done a lot more than threatening. Sicheng needed time.

 

The first panel meeting with all eighteen members went better than expected. Better by miles, in fact. Johnny and Taeyong spoke up about their recent Mating- not many people were surprised. What didn’t come up in conversation, and hadn't planned to be, was Jungwoo and Jaehyun’s Mating. Needless to say, their reveal would lead to a lot of backlash, hateful comments and genuine surprise, meaning they’d need time to let the subject die down before appearing again. And it was easy to do that, until the effects of the scent neutralisers kicked in and Jungwoo got light-headed. Cutting the meeting short, Jungwoo, Jaehyun and Taeil left out the side entrance- Taeil as a, sort of, buffer to keep suspicions at bay. And things went on- performances and press and fan meetings and Jungwoo was getting weaker.

It was their seventh consecutive live show that Jungwoo finally cracked, collapsing on stage and causing a sharp stab to cut through Jaehyun’s chest. He could hardly remember anything from that moment, only Johnny towering over him, staring anxiously, wide-eyed and telling him that everything would be fine.

The next thing he knew, he was waking in an unfamiliar room, Jaehyun curled up in a chair beside his single bed. The clock on the bedside table read 7pm,  _ they must’ve put me on a flight _ , he thought. He had no recollection of the time between passing out and arriving in this hotel room in a new country-  _ Manila, was it? _ \- but he must have been conscious at some point, right?

“Woo-ah?” Jaehyun was awake, calling his name, but it seemed distant, too far away for him to reach, “Jungwoo? Baby, can you hear me?” He called again and suddenly his eyes focused and his head cleared just enough for him to nod his response.

“I’m awake.” He replied flatly, a furrow pulling Jaehyun’s eyebrows together as he scrutinised him, “Jaehyun? What- what happened?” There was a long silence and Jaehyun stood, rearranging Jungwoo to sit him between his legs, chest to back.

“You- you fell sick.” Jaehyun said shortly, stroking his hair back and kissing his neck softly, hesitantly, “Everything got a little much with the scent neutralisers and you collapsed- granted, you were also exhausted. Why haven’t you been sleeping? I knew you weren’t sleeping as much, but you’re hardly even rested. You’ve been out for- for a while now, I got the night off for us-” Jaehyun began explaining, but Jungwoo was jolting forward, his vision blurring at the sudden movement.

“You took the night off- I took the night off? We can’t just slack off after all we’ve been through-  _ Jesus- _ if we’re quick then maybe the makeup artists will still be around- hey, what time are we on? How far is the venue-?” Jungwoo was yelping now, trying to pull himself out of bed, Jaehyun holding him firmly by the waist and not letting him leave.

“Yes, well, there is absolutely no way that you’re going to do that- No way that  _ we’re _ going to do that. We’re going to stay here and rest until you feel better, even if that means missing another show, even the rest of the tour. Jungwoo, I think you forget how well I know your body, know your Omega. You’re overworking yourself, so, why didn’t you tell me something was more wrong than you let on?” Jaehyun asked, tilting Jungwoo’s face back to look at him with concern. Jungwoo tried to pull away again, simply laying back on Jaehyun’s chest when he didn’t give in. They were silent again and if Jaehyun had known better, he would’ve assumed Jungwoo had fallen asleep again, but he also knew how stubborn Jungwoo could be.

“Nothing. There’s nothing wrong, I’m just overworking myself, like you said. It’s not a big deal-” He began again, finally cutting through the silence, but Jaehyun was turning his face again, meeting his eyes properly this time.

“‘Not a big deal’? You scared me half-to-death, Jungwoo! I was so worried, I thought you were seriously ill- no- my  _ Alpha _ thought you were seriously ill. Johnny had to take me aside, I really thought you were going to leave me and I was  _ scared _ , okay?” Jaehyun was close to crying now and Jungwoo could tell, but he couldn’t quite fathom why he’d care for him that much. They’d barely progressed with their relationship outside of their Mating and bond and, frankly, Jungwoo was starting to give up hope that Jaehyun might ever properly love him. He knew he’d never get to have what Johnny and Taeyong had, but it was nice to pretend sometimes. 

“I just- I didn’t want to cause anymore setbacks for us and now I have and I’m just annoyed with myself.” Jungwoo swiped a tear away before it fell down his cheek. Jaehyun noticed. 

“B-but, this isn’t your fault, Woo-ah. If anything, it’s my fault. I was the one who accidentally bonded you, it was my fault we had to end up Mating. I got you into this mess, so please don’t blame yourself.” Jaehyun ran a rhythmic hand up and down Jungwoo’s chest, holding him closer than he even deemed possible, “I know I should be trying more. I know I should be taking care of you more, but I still don’t know how to do all of this. I don’t know about boys, I don’t know how to treat you without over-coddling you and I definitely don’t want you to think I treat you too rough just because you’re a boy. I can’t find the balance, but I’m trying, Jungwoo, I really am.” He pressed a line of kisses up Jungwoo’s neck, breathing in his scent and latching his lips onto his scent gland. Jungwoo was sobbing softly in his arms and Jaehyun hated how much it hurt his chest, he hated seeing Jungwoo upset, hated seeing him unwell.

“I- I know, Jaehyun.” Jungwoo said shortly, “I know you’re trying. You’re doing amazingly. You’re treating me better than I could’ve ever imagined, I really am lucky to have you.” Jungwoo locked their fingers together on his abdomen, his other hand resting just above Jaehyun’s knee.

“I wish I’d tried harder before we Mated, I wish I’d treated you better, maybe then I would be better for you now that we’re together. I’m sorry, I really am.” Jaehyun mumbled into his skin, rocking them gently to soothe Jungwoo’s sobs, “You’re going to tire yourself out if you keep crying like that, darling.” And if anything could’ve lifted the weight in Jungwoo’s chest, it would’ve been the way his voice wrapped around the pet-name.

“I don’t care about that anymore, Jaehyun, I just care about you now. I care about the way you kiss me when I wake up in the mornings and the way you give me the best pieces of beef when we go out for dinner. I care about all those days off that you stay in bed with me until midday and the nights you come home late from practice and make us both dinner. I don’t care about the past anymore, I just want you, I want you to be my future.” Jungwoo turned in his arms, hands resting on his shoulders as he uttered the words and Jaehyun was smiling softly, nodding along as he realised what Jungwoo truly meant by this all. He knew that they were supposed to let go of the past the day they’d awoken from Mating, but Jaehyun was so scared and everything was so new and difficult and he didn’t know how to treat Jungwoo right. He knew it was stupid, but he also knew that it wouldn’t be like this if he hadn’t been raised in such a strict household. He was done caring what other people thought and he was definitely done doing what he was told.

“I know. I want you to be my future too, but you have to look after yourself as well, the same way that I have to look after myself. Just, please, tell us when something’s up. You don’t even have to tell me, you can tell Taeil or Johnny or Taeyong- hell- you can tell Jisung if you want, just let someone know. It’s clear that you need to stop taking the suppressants, so we’re going to have to figure out another solution, that’s all. That’s all there is to it, we just have to find another option for you, no need to jump to conclusions or pretend you’re fine. We’ve got you, especially me, I’ve got you.” Jaehyun’s exhaustion was creeping into his voice now and Jungwoo could hear it. He reached around to kiss him softly, mumbling his thanks and soft apologies before snuggling down into Jaehyun’s chest, getting comfortable for them both to sleep in the single bed. 

  
  


__________________________

 

_ \- 5 Years Later - _

______________________

  
  


Renjun slid down the corridor, knocking at Jungwoo’s bedroom door before he was greeted with a grunt for him to enter. 

“Hyung! Hyung, he’s home, we have to tell him! Come on, get up, wake up!” He was yelling Chenle running in after him, tugging on Jungwoo’s bedsheets as he tried to curl under a comforter, reeking of Jaehyun’s scent. At the realisation of Renjun’s words, Jungwoo was sitting up quickly, curling in on himself as a pain shot through his stomach from the fast movement.

“Already? He’s home already? I thought he was coming back this evening! Why didn’t you wake me before, I don’t even have time to shower!” Jungwoo was pushing the sheets to the foot of his bed, running a hand over his abdomen as his stretched languidly. 

“It was supposed to be a surprise but Taeil-Hyung had to collect him from the airport. Now, come  _ on _ .” Chenle was speaking now, tossing a vague outfit towards Jungwoo and not caring that he was stripping down to his underwear. 

The 97, 96, 95 and 94 liners had been out on a promotional trip in japan for almost two months at this point, various members coming home for the night or a few weeks, but Jaehyun hadn’t gotten the leave for it. Jungwoo, as the oldest, not only had a sense of responsibility about looking after the younger kids, but also wanted to prove to himself that he didn’t need his Alpha around  _ all  _ the time. That was until he realised he was pregnant, a week into Jaehyun going away. He’d immediately messaged Johnny and told him and Taeyong, but they all decided to keep it a secret from all the other members on the Japan trip, meanwhile, Doyoung was sent home every other week to check in and the younger kids had been put on ‘Jungwoo Duty’ instead of the other way around. They’d been so good, every single one of them, and as much as Johnny had begged that Jungwoo just give in and let them send Jaehyun home, he insisted that he was fine. He really wanted to prove himself and he really,  _ really _ wanted to surprise Jaehyun. They’d talked about it a lot, spoken about how they’d deal with things if Jungwoo did fall pregnant and that eventually they did want children. Jaehyun had even put forward the idea of adopting to try and save Jungwoo from the pain and struggles of pregnancy but Jungwoo was open to trying more than one option. It was mad how in five short years, they’d gone from nothing to having kids together. 

Renjun patted Jungwoo’s hair down and helped with his sweater, always overly careful and almost too cautious. Jungwoo smiled fondly. 

“Hyung? You coming?” Lucas was at the door, knocking as he peaked through the gap, scanning Jungwoo’s tired expression and smiling sympathetically. He’d got a lot of those smiles in the past month, though, they were usually given to him when he had his head in the toilet bowl. 

“I’m coming.” Jungwoo said softly, ushering them all out the door as he reached for the envelope in his bedside drawer. With his loose sweater, there was no way the small bump would be visible, but there was a chance Jaehyun could smell a shift in scent and he just hoped Jungwoo could explain it before he started guessing. 

“Woo-ah! Baby!” Jungwoo had his head down as he walked towards the living room, but Jaehyun was yelling, bounding towards him and scooping him up in his arms. 

“Jaehyun!” Taeyong was scolding, a series of nervous gasps flew around the room and Jaehyun frowned, planting Jungwoo back on his feet gently. 

“Did I hurt you? Holy shit, I’m sorry, I must’ve not felt it. I’m sorry baby, are you okay?” Jaehyun was rushing, eyes full of concern as he ran his fingertips over Jungwoo’s body, gentle and hesitant.

“I’m fine, don’t worry. I didn’t know you’d be home this early! I was going to make an effort and try to look nice, but you arrived so early!” Jungwoo was giggling, joining the group in the living room. Jaehyun hummed, pulling Jungwoo into his lap as he curled into the armchair. 

“Mh, are you sure you’re okay? You smell different, not bad different, I’m just worried.” Jaehyun questioned, running his hands over his hips and feeling the little weight gain he’d put on his waist. He didn’t comment, loving Jungwoo’s body any way Jungwoo found comfortable for himself. 

“I- um- I have something to tell you all, actually.” Jungwoo stuttered out, the group falling quiet and watching as Jaehyun let him shift in his arms. 

“What is it, baby?” Jaehyun asked softly, looking around the room in confusion, Lucas and Chenle’s looks of delight were beginning to put him on edge. 

“I’m- I’m pregnant.” Jungwoo said softly, reaching in his back pocket for the baby scans he’d gotten with Doyoung. There was a half second of silence before the room was filled with noise. Jaehyun turned him in his lap, taking the envelope from him with wide eyes, mouth agape. 

“Y-you’re- are you messing with me?” Jaehyun asked, voice hinting excitement, but Jungwoo was pushing the photos into his hands. 

“I’m not messing with you, Jaehyunnie.” Jungwoo smiled, watching as Jaehyun’s eyes filled as he inspected the pictures in his hands. 

“T-twins?” He choked out, wiping the back of his hand across his face and looking up at Jungwoo in his lap, “For real?” He added, scanning between the pictures, Jungwoo’s face and his abdomen covered by his sweater. Jungwoo smiled, leaning forward to wipe his eyes with his thumbs, cradling his face and kissing the tip of his nose. 

“For real.” Jungwoo nodded, noticing how the rest of the members were slowly filtering out the room, kissing Jungwoo’s forehead with mumbled congratulations. Jaehyun was still in shock, looking over to Taeyong and Johnny leaving the living room with matching smirks.

“W-why didn’t you tell me? Oh my god- you’re two months in? I can’t believe I missed this!” Jaehyun squeaked, his voice somewhere between excitement and frantic disbelief. 

“I wanted to keep it a surprise and I’m fine anyway. Johnny-Hyung begged me to tell you so he could send you home, but I wanted to keep it a surprise.” Jungwoo explained, lifting his shirt a few inches for Jaehyun to slide a hand onto his stomach, “Here, you can feel their heartbeat.” Jungwoo smiled, laying a hand over Jaehyun’s as he stared up at him in surprise. He could smell the second scents stronger now, the pulsing beat steady beneath the palm of his hand and he found himself smiling through his tears. 

“I thought we were being careful, though.” Jaehyun giggled softly, caressing Jungwoo’s stomach with the pads of his thumbs.

“Well, I mean, clearly we weren’t being careful enough.” Jungwoo smiled bashfully, cradling Jaehyun’s jaw and swallowing dryly, “Are you- are you happy?” 

“Are you joking?” Jaehyun replied in exasperation, “I don’t think there’s been a moment in my life that I’ve ever been happier.” Jungwoo snorted, leaning forward to rest his forehead on Jaehyun’s shoulder with a smile.

“Wow, that means a lot, clearly us Mating wasn’t a memorable moment for you.” Jungwoo sassed, but Jaehyun was sliding his hands higher up beneath his sweater, running his thumbs over the plain of his stomach and up to brush against his nipples, more sensitive than the last time Jaehyun remembered, but that was probably down to the pregnancy.

“Of course it was memorable,” Jaehyun leant into kiss his neck, licking at the mark he’d made almost six years ago, “But does this mean we don’t get to do it for another seven months? I was sort of hoping for some welcome-home-sex.” He added shamelessly and Jungwoo was gasping in mock horror at his crude words before falling into a fit of giggles, his breath fanning Jaehyun’s neck.

“No, I can still have sex, you just have to be gentle.” Jungwoo smiled, shivering when Jaehyun continued his ministrations with his fingers, pressing and pinching him enough to make him grit his teeth.

“Great, let’s go.” Jaehyun, breathed in relief, sliding his hands under Jungwoo’s thighs and lifting him to carry back towards their room.

“Woah, woah, woah, that didn’t mean I  _ wanted _ to have sex with you!”


End file.
